Student Success Equity Intensive

We help our members accelerate equitable student success

Our end-to-end guided learning experience empowers your institution to adapt and evolve to meet the unique needs of current and future students.

Join a cohort of equity-driven institutions in a collaborative transformation journey. This transformational experience, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is specifically for institutions committed to student success and closing equity gaps for Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and low-income students.

Program Learning Objectives

OVERVIEW

This cohort experience accelerates transformation by providing specific and customized support so that your institution can make data-informed decisions to close equity gaps and achieve student success goals for Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and low-income students.

Work  with subject matter experts in data analytics, equity, student success, advising, institutional transformation, and strategic and systems planning:
  • Collaborate across institutions to uncover shared challenges and solutions to achieving equitable student outcomes
  • Collaborate with cross-campus teams to develop, articulate and act on a shared vision for student success and prioritized action plan
  • Recognize individual strengths and growth opportunities to build the long-term ability to contribute to transformation
Take an integrated, student-centered, comprehensive approach to transformation:
  • Leverage a continuous improvement process to make informed, data-driven decisions grounded in the reality of students
  • Articulate an equity imperative to help everyone see their role in ensuring the institution is student-ready
  • Hear success stories from other campuses and experts in the field and understand how to apply learnings to their own context

Program Details

PROGRAM STRUCTURE
  • A cohort of institutions committed to closing equity gaps for Black, Latinx, Indigenous and low-income students
  • Team-based learning journey with peers, including online modules and webinars
  • In-person & virtual convenings for connecting with content experts and collaborating with your campus team and other cohort members
  • Institutional assessment and personalized AASCU coaching aligned to your specific goals and current needs
  • Access to tools, resources, templates, subject-matter experts, and peer learning community
PROGRAM COST

Thanks to the generous support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, there is no cost of participation.

PROGRAM AUDIENCE

This program is designed for leaders at four-year regional comprehensive institutions that are AASCU members.

ROLES & TIME COMMITMENT

One of the cornerstones of AASCU’s student success efforts is our emphasis on engaging senior leaders in key positions at your institution as a student success team. Team members work together to understand and elevate student experiences, review data to inform student success strategies aligned with institutional strengths and growth opportunities and engage others on their campus in transformation.

To participate in the Student Success Equity Intensive, institutions must assemble a campus team consisting of at least the following required roles:

President: A visionary committed to long-term success with students and the community at the center; empowers teams & creates an environment ready for change.

Campus Team Lead: A trusted partner & main liaison to the AASCU team. This person should be someone close to Student Success work & be able to champion the tangible work of institution-wide transformation and keep their teams aligned, on-target, & in-motion. Note: This position can be held by any of the roles below.

Provost: A thought-leader and operational strategist who can help bring clarity and direction to the ambiguity that can quickly stall efforts.

Data Lead: A subject matter expert who values evidenced-based decision making and informs the campus team’s understanding of the student experience by collecting, managing, and analyzing data.

There is no limit to the number of participants. Additional team member(s) may include VPs, Directors, etc. from the following areas:

  • Students (Strongly Encouraged)
  • Student Success
  • Faculty
  • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  • Student Affairs
  • Student Financial Aid
TIME COMMITMENT

Bi-Monthly cohort calls with full teams from each campus in the cohort (2-Hours); quarterly team calls with your institution specific team and AASCU coach (1 Hour; 3 Hour ITA x2); Monthly coaching calls between Campus Team Lead and AASCU coach (45-minutes); and quarterly call with the president and provost.

There is a great deal of support provided to your institution as part of SSEI. Your institution will participate in data gathering, consensus conversations and be invited to working sessions (regional and national). You will receive Technical Assistance and be invited to workshops, professional development that align to key areas that you identify and that will help support your work to close equity gaps. We work hard to ensure that the meetings and support commitments are not an undue burden on staff time.

Beyond these formal convenings, we recommend that teams meet regularly (semi-weekly or monthly) to get the most out of the experience.

Key Learning Experiences

Cross-Department Collaboration

Build strong, trusting, effective teams across divisions critical for addressing systemic barriers to student success.

Equity-Minded Data Discussions

Refine your equity strategy through a deep dive into your institution’s qualitative and quantitative insights.

SUBJECT MATTER Expert Speakers

Connect with subject matter experts for technical assistance to help your institution meet its equity goals.

Adaptive Curriculum

Connect with other institutions in guided, judgment-free discussions around the real-time challenges you are navigating.

Promising Practices

Learn and share best practices with your cohort and celebrate each other’s progress toward student success.

Case-making for Action

Craft meaningful stories to support case-making internally and externally along your transformation journey.

Evidence-Based Approach

OUR PILLARS OF TRANSFORMATION

For over 50 years, AASCU has worked with its member institutions to deliver on the American promise of access, affordability and educational opportunity and on the commitment to serve as stewards of place in their communities. Beginning in 2016, AASCU began documenting and describing the transformation processes at the heart of equitable student outcomes experienced among a subset of partner institutions. Our observations and analyses based on these years of institutional qualitative and quantitative data have led us to develop a set of core pillars we hypothesize are foundational for successful transformation. We draw upon these pillars to create the Student Success Equity Intensive. Learn more about the approach and context of this research by visiting postsecondarytransformation.org.

A process of continuous improvement

A culture of evidence and assessment

Integrated student-centered structures, processes, and supports

Engagement with community and regional stakeholders

A culture of shared leadership and vision

OUR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PROCESS

Building upon our work documenting and describing transformation among regional comprehensive institutions, AASCU has launching a unique cohorted learning experience for our members that guides campus teams through a five-step continuous improvement process. This experience reflects the contributions and lessons learned in partnership with over 70 AASCU members, experts across higher education, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Working as a team through a structured 5-step process – with AASCU’s facilitation, tools, and connections to field experts – institutions can accelerate their journey to equitable student success by strengthening their pillars of transformation.