Full Description
Higher education institutions have already begun to see decreasing enrollment numbers, even as higher education enrollment is predicted to drop precipitously starting in 2025. Much of the decrease in enrollment will be driven by demographic trends about which higher education institutions can do little, making the retention of students who do enroll that much more important. Overall retention rates have stagnated and differential retention rates by race and ethnicity have persisted. If higher education institutions, researchers, and policy makers are to improve retention rates, a critical examination of the current state and future directions of retention research is essential.This edited volume begins that examination by addressing several questions: What are the needed directions in theory and research on college student persistence and how do we translate new theory and research into effective practices? Are we asking the right questions, looking in the right places, or trying to apply out-of-date theories to new populations? In short, how can the research community help institutions improve retention in this challenging time?
Contents
1 IMPROVING COLLEGE STUDENT PERSISTENCE New Developments in Theory, Research, and Practice PART ONE: THEORIES AND MODELS 2 REIMAGINING STUDENT PERSISTENCE, RETENTION, AND SUCCESS An Exploration of New Theories and Models 3 A CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THEORIES OF RETENTION AND PERSISTENCE FOR BLACK STUDENTS IN PREDOMINANTLY WHITE INSTITUTIONS 4 TOWARD A REVISION OF TWO EMPIRICALLY SUPPORTED THEORIES OF COLLEGE STUDENT PERSISTENCE PART TWO: RESEARCH 5 INVENTORYING THE ARTICLES ON STUDENT RETENTION PUBLISHED IN CORE HIGHER EDUCATION JOURNALS OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS 6 SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS AND COLLEGE STUDENT PERSISTENCE, RETENTION, AND GRADUATION 7 ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND STUDENT PERSISTENCE IN COLLEGE 8 ARE YOU EXPERIENCED? How College Environments, Programs, and Interactions Shape Student Retention, Persistence, and Graduation 9 STUDYING STUDENTS AS THEY SWIRL Methodological Challenges of Studying Student Retention in the Age of Student Mobility PART THREE: PRACTICE 10 CREATING AND SUSTAINING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE TO PROMOTE COLLEGE STUDENT PERSISTENCE IN NATURAL AND OPEN SYSTEMS 11 A TRANSLATION OF RESEARCH INTO ACTION? Toward a Pragmatic Conceptualization of Social Mechanisms in Retention Research and Practice 12 SHIFTING ENVIRONMENTS, EMERGING NORMS How Changes in Policy, Technology, Data, and Market Competition Affect Enrollment Management Processes 13 FORGING THE TWO-WAY PRACTITIONER-RESEARCHER LOOP FOR ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT An Examination of the Research and Communication Needs of Enrolment Managers 14 IMPROVING COLLEGE COMPLETION What Have We Learned About "Policy Levers"? 15 CHARTING FUTURE DIRECTIONS FOR THEORY, RESEARCH, AND PRACTICE OF COLLEGE STUDENT PERSISTENCE
