Student Success, Everyone's Business

About the Book

High schools, community colleges, business schools, trade schools, colleges, and universities are committed in their mission statements to helping students succeed.  Unfortunately, not all employees are fully committed nor are all administrators knowledgeable about how to effectively address the topic.  Since all employees have direct or indirect opportunities to favorably or unfavorably impact students' success potential, literally all employees and volunteers must be made aware of their obligations.  This book is most applicable to postsecondary institutions, but offers many ideas valuable to secondary schools, particularly those with high drop-out rates.

Student Success, Everyone's Business describes postsecondary school dropout indicators and hence provides strategies schools can implement or strengthen to help students stay in school and succeed.  Advice in the book involves every school employee.

Twelve imperatives with which every school must provide students assistance are explained.  Each is followed by an expediency through which the school can implement/accomplish the imperatives.  The twelve imperatives are to help students:

1. Believe they can succeed

2. Understand how to make decisions

3. Know how to solve problems

4. Wisely utilize their time

5. Gain support from their home environment

6. Manage stress

7. Learn to set meaningful goals

8. Learn or recall how to effectively study

9. Master daily survival

10. Understand the importance of personal commitment

11. Form mutual support groups

12. Keep in mind the value of the education they are pursuing

Next is a chapter providing 101 helpful hints to augment the twelve imperatives.  Again, each is followed by an implementation expediency.  These helpful hints are presented in eight sub-chapter units.  They are:

Early Bonding

Student Services

Classroom Matters

Learning Enhancements

Motivational Opportunities/Recognition

Facilities

Faculty/Staff Selection and Development

Staff in Total

If student retention from matriculation to graduation is less than 90%, it is a social shame, a drain on school resources, a likely negative impact on colleges' student loan default rates, and a disservice to students.  If the student retention rate is 60-70%, as is the case for many schools, a formal strategy to enhance student retention is needed, if not required.  Student Success, Everyone's Business is a painless, practical blueprint of how literally every employee at the school can actively support student success, which translates to student retention and graduation.

About the Author

Dr. Jack J. Bainter is a nationally recognized expert in the area of student success. He has spoken on the topic before national and international audiences and trained school staffs in 27 states.