News Release

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January 12, 2006

Boise State Issues Freshman Success Task Force Report and University Action Plan

A yearlong study by the Freshman Success Task Force created at Boise State University to increase retention of first-year students has been completed with the issuance of 66 recommendations in 21 areas. The university administration has subsequently outlined an action plan for each recommendation.

To read the entire Freshman Success Task Force Report and the university�s action plan, go to http://www2.boisestate.edu/vpaa/Freshmen_success/.

�The task force has tackled a significant issue for Boise State and responded with creative and thoughtful recommendations that will improve the first-year experience of our students,� said Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Sona Andrews. �The university is committed to implementing these recommendations. The retention and graduation of students are at the heart of Boise State�s mission.�

The 12-member task force, commissioned by Andrews and Mark Wheeler, interim vice president for student affairs, and chaired by communication professor Suzanne McCorkle, developed a philosophical statement: The task force believes that Boise State University can and should take positive steps to increase the probability of success in freshmen moving from the first to second year. Instituting change requires action on two fronts: institutional culture and specific programmatic efforts.

The most recent data from the fall of 2003 class indicates that Boise State has a 61 percent retention rate for full-time freshmen. Recommendations for improvement included areas of staffing, orientation, learning in math, admission standards, student services, and academic and career advising.

Some of the specific recommendations of the task force include:
-Adopt a freshman success philosophy statement
-Create an associate vice president for undergraduate studies position
-Expand orientation options and offer Web-based orientation programs
-Ensure that information given at orientation ties directly to University 101 classes
-Require incoming freshmen to complete a reading program
-Provide timely and accurate data about majors by class standing to departments
-View math success as a university challenge and offer multiple methods of math      instruction
-Continue to raise admission standards for new freshmen
-Provide knowledgeable cross-trained generalists in a one-stop student service center
-Create a hotline for faculty and staff that provides quick and accurate answers to
questions students ask
-Develop a campus portal or other means of interactively connecting students to the
university
-Assign each student a full-time faculty or professional adviser
-Consolidate student activities and programming through a dean of students model
-Create incentives to encourage departments to place the best full-time teachers in
freshman classes
-Provide more paid, on-campus employment opportunities for freshmen
-Continue the faculty-in-residence program tied to residence hall communities

�The dedicated students, faculty and staff on the task force worked over the span of one year to research and understand the barriers to freshman success here and at other universities,� McCorkle said. �After problem areas were identified, subgroups researched solutions applied by other universities or recommended by Boise State employees. Each recommendation was debated by the task force, resulting in the final report. We hope the report will assist the Boise State community to commit resources and renewed energy in a collective effort to enhance student learning and success.�

The members of the task force were McCorkle, Cindy Anson (Provost�s Office), Marcia Belcheir (Institutional Assessment), Valerie Cleary (TRIO Programs), John Gardner (Mechanical Engineering Department), Patricia Kempthorne (community member), Bill Lathen (College of Business and Economics), Vince Moreno (student), Chris Rosenbaum (Budget Office), Roger Stewart (Literacy Department), Kim Thomas (University Bookstore), and Shelton Woods (College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs).

A comparable effort to examine student retention at Boise State also occurred in 1994 and resulted in positive outcomes, including a revamped student orientation program and the formation of University 101 freshman seminars.

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Contact: Suzanne McCorkle, Freshman Success Task Force Chair, (208) 426-3928 or Sona Andrews, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, (208) 426-1202
Media Contact: Frank Zang, University Communications, (208) 426-5391, frankzang@boisestate.edu

Boise State University is the largest institution of higher education in Idaho with about 18,600 students and 2,200 faculty and staff. More than 190 undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and technical degrees are offered within eight colleges. A metropolitan university located in the capital city, Boise State is committed to life-enhancing research, teaching excellence and public service.
 

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Last reviewed on Wednesday, January 03, 2007