Bring Bobcats Back is a formal outreach to undergraduate stop-outs at Texas …
Bring Bobcats Back is a formal outreach to undergraduate stop-outs at Texas State University who have not completed their bachelor's degree. The program started in 2018 by targeting 350 seniors close to graduation but not enrolled in the past year. Due to early success, the university expanded the program in June 2020. The goal was to contact all undergraduate students who stopped out between 1990 and 2018. The list was checked through the National Student Clearinghouse database for degree completion at other institutions. The university developed an external partnership with ReUp Education to scale the operation. We did outreach to over 25,000 students who had attended in the past 28 years. Since 2020, we have enrolled 438 students, currently engaging 2,252 about returning, and 119 have graduated. We have 37 that have applied for May 2022 graduation. We have 256 students enrolled this spring. The persistence rate from fall to spring was 83%. The university applied for and received a three million reskilling grant from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to help remove financial barriers. This grant has allowed us to expand the reach to stop-outs, displaced workers, or those who want to reskill. Each semester, after census day, we add any new names for outreach. The feedback data from stop-outs is helping us to be more proactive with retention practices. The six-year graduation rate jumped by 2.8% since 2019. (2013 cohort 54%, 2014 Cohort 55%, and 2015 cohort 56.8%). We expect hundreds more students will enroll and graduate in the coming years from the Bring Bobcats Back initiative.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format.
PROGRAM SCALE: Large-scale (reaches more than 25 percent of its intended target population)
APPROXIMATE PARTICIPANTS SERVED IN 2021-22: 240 students enrolled in fall (119 graduated) and 256 students enrolled in spring.
HOW TO ENROLL: Participants must apply to enroll in this program
WEBSITE TO APPLY: https://www.finaid.txstate.edu/more-info/general/texas-reskilling-grant-2021.html
EVALUATION STATUS: Data related to program outcomes are currently being internally and externally collected
In the Course Transformation Project, a team of faculty who teach courses …
In the Course Transformation Project, a team of faculty who teach courses with traditionally high D/F/W rates work together to explore ways to improve student learning and performance in the course by incorporating student-centered, evidence-based design and teaching practices as well as disseminating and replicating best practices already in use by individual instructors. The director of the Office of Faculty Development serves as project facilitator. The project includes examining granular, disaggregated course data to identify design and pedagogical strengths and gaps. These data are used by the team to identify research-based design and pedagogical practices that address gaps and enhance strengths. The team integrates these identified practices into the course as disciplinary-appropriate interventions in a pilot phase of the project. In addition, the team designs and implements methods of assessing efficacy of the interventions during the pilot. The team meets weekly during the design stage of the project and monthly during the implementation stage to discuss findings and make any necessary adjustments.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format.
PROGRAM SCALE: Small-scale (reaches fewer than 10 percent of its target population)
APPROXIMATE PARTICIPANTS SERVED IN 2021-22: 10 Faculty teaching General Chemistry I and General Chemistry II (This is our pilot year.)
HOW TO ENROLL: Participants are automatically enrolled in this program if they meet eligibility requirements
EVALUATION STATUS: No data related to outcomes have been collected from this program
DEPARTMENT(S) OVERSEEING PROGRAM: Office of Faculty Development
CONTACT FOR MORE INFO: Dr. Candace Hastings at hastings@txstate.edu or 512-245-2112
Recognizing the importance of STEM education in preparing the increasingly diverse generations …
Recognizing the importance of STEM education in preparing the increasingly diverse generations that will make up the American workforce, this project strives to generate STEM student success at Texas State University (TXST) for Hispanic and Low Income (HLI) students who will become our next scientific and technical professionals. There are four primary activities designed to address persistent challenges in STEM education and career attainment for HLI students. Activity 1 will create a Peer Education Program with Success Coaches that will serve all incoming HLI freshman and transfer students in their first year at TXST who are identified through a predictive analytics factor-specific model as needing high-support during their transition to college. Activity 2 will improve the transfer navigation process and increase transfer matriculation to TXST through creation of a Transfer Articulation and Navigation Center. Center staff will initiate new transfer articulation agreements with 2-year HSIs, produce an online repository of course equivalency guides and other information pertinent for transfer students, and provide direct student transfer advising to facilitate the transfer process. Activity 3 will create a STEM Workforce Advisory Council to build collaborations with STEM employers leading to expanded Co-Op and work-based experiences for HLI STEM students; additionally, a new Work-based Experience Preparatory program will be implemented to provide targeted students with professional development improving their competitiveness for employment upon graduation. Activity 4 will provide professional development in culturally responsive teaching methods for STEM faculty teaching core courses that will enable faculty to make lasting changes to their instructional methods to improve HLI students' success.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format or has both online and in-person components.
PROGRAM SCALE: Medium-scale (reaches between 10 and 25 percent of its target population)
This initiative aims to harness the effectiveness of evidence-informed interventions to target …
This initiative aims to harness the effectiveness of evidence-informed interventions to target mood-related concerns. The goal is to provide campus-wide, multi-modal instruction and engagement in mindfulness, stress reduction, emotional intelligence, and Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training. This initiative consists of interactive video-based instruction, live workshops, curated on-demand campus reflection/relaxation spaces, self-help resources (individual and utilization in academic classes), campus focused MHFA, and an invited expert speaker or panel event. The expanded dissemination of prevention-focused skills training will serve as a buffer against more severe psychological distress and behavioral concerns, allow students to more fully engage in their academic pursuits/interpersonal relationships, as well as assist the participants in better identifying options to assist those experiencing psychological or emotional distress. These interventions are targeted for both the general student population and numerous smaller student populations that benefit from additional support/attention.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format or has both online and in-person components.
PROGRAM SCALE: Medium-scale (reaches between 10 and 25 percent of its target population)
DEPARTMENT(S) OVERSEEING PROGRAM: Counseling Center/ Texas State University
CONTACT FOR MORE INFO: Richard A. Martinez at ram309@txstate.edu or 512-245-2208
Peer Mentors are here to help first-year students academically and socially transition …
Peer Mentors are here to help first-year students academically and socially transition to Texas State University during their first year. Peer Mentors are upperclassmen embedded in a first-year seminar course and meet with students twice a semester or more to facilitate a successful first year transition. Peer Mentors are certified through the College Reading and Learning Association International Peer Educator Training Program. Goals and objectives for the program include: maximize student academic and personal success, create a supportive environment, connect first-year students to campus resources, assist in fostering a student's sense of belonging to increase first-year retention rates.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program is in-person only.
PROGRAM SCALE: Large-scale (reaches more than 25 percent of its intended target population)
APPROXIMATE PARTICIPANTS SERVED IN 2021-22: 5663
HOW TO ENROLL: Participants are automatically enrolled in this program if they meet eligibility requirements
EVALUATION STATUS: Data related to program outcomes are currently being internally collected
DEPARTMENT(S) OVERSEEING PROGRAM: University College - Student Services
CONTACT FOR MORE INFO: Rafael Almanzar at mlb428@txstate.edu or 512-245-5100
Project Maestros is a title V HSI grant funded program from the …
Project Maestros is a title V HSI grant funded program from the Department of Education. Project Maestros seeks to enhance the transfer student and teacher pipelines. Maestros provides transfer navigation for all prospective and incoming transfer students; this includes individual appointments and credit evaluation. Maestros supports pre-service teachers at Texas State University through professional development seminars focused on culture, community, and communication in the classroom. We offer certification exam test preparation options throughout the academic year as well. Maestros will be grant funded through AY 2023-2024 and efforts will be institutionalized by the Transfer Center and College of Education following grant funding.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format or has both online and in-person components.
PROGRAM SCALE: Medium-scale (reaches between 10 and 25 percent of its target population)
Supplemental Instruction is a nontraditional form of tutoring that focuses on collaboration, …
Supplemental Instruction is a nontraditional form of tutoring that focuses on collaboration, group study, and interaction to assist students in courses considered "traditionally difficult." SI targets courses with a minimum 30% or higher percentage rate of students who will not successfully complete the course and then provides a trained peer to facilitate organized, weekly study sessions throughout each semester. Primary goals and objectives are to (a) reduce course attrition and improve grades, (b) provide structured, interactively study time with peers, and (c) demonstrate appropriate learning and study strategies that students may integrate into their other coursework.
DELIVERY FORMAT: The program has a hybrid format.
PROGRAM SCALE: Large-scale (reaches more than 25 percent of its intended target population)
APPROXIMATE PARTICIPANTS SERVED IN 2021-22: 5247
HOW TO ENROLL: Students automatically have access when they enroll in a course that has integrated SI into its course design.
EVALUATION STATUS: Data related to program outcomes are currently being internally collected
DEPARTMENT(S) OVERSEEING PROGRAM: Student Learning Assistance Center (SLAC)
CONTACT FOR MORE INFO: Lindley Workman Alyea at lindley@txstate.edu or 512-245-2515
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