In 2018, Watermark worked independently with three institutions within the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) to quantitatively analyze student outcomes measuring course completion and persistence for minority male students. Our goal was to best determine specific training and outreach messages using Student Success & Engagement and predictive models identifying at-risk students. Given the success of this initiative, further research was desired and a much larger consortium of institutions was developed through the NCCCS Minority Male Success Initiative (MMSI).
The purpose of the Minority Male Success Initiative (MMSI) is to increase the progression and completion rates of minority male students. The project will aim to accomplish the following goals and objectives:
This observational cohort analysis sets out to identify student characteristics correlated with student outcomes measuring course completion and student persistence for minority male students and to determine how those correlating factors compare with other student populations at the institution.
The design of the study will be to:
While causal analysis is pending, preliminary impact results provide initial evidence that success coaching, predictive analytics and the use of automated early alerts can assist in closing the equity gap in higher education and improve student outcomes for underserved student populations.
A longitudinal cohort analysis was performed and included descriptive statistics demonstrating the observed outcome measures for multiple student populations. Using insights gathered during the development of the MMSI schools’ Course Completion and student Persistence risk models, student characteristics found significant in the prediction of Course Completion and/or student Persistence were identified for further investigation.
Two-proportion sample tests were used to determine the statistical significance of difference in outcome measures for the factor influencing student success using a 95 percent confidence rate. Differences that are statistically significant (in other words, differences that are not due to chance and have sample sizes that are large enough to make inferences from) are presented throughout the report. We encourage higher education institutions to not only focus on the percentage differences, but to use these preliminary results to target your interventions.
We encourage higher education institutions to not only focus on the percentage differences (that are not due to chance), but to use these preliminary results to target your interventions.
Data for this report was extracted from the Student Success & Engagement data warehouse. Used primarily to build and support the various risk models assigning and displaying student risk profiles within Student Success & Engagement, this data warehouse contains many of the data points of interest when exploring long-term impact of student success initiatives on campus. This data warehouse is updated daily by the Student Success & Engagement product with the primary purpose to extract, transform and load institutional data from each of the primary systems on campus (SIS, LMS, Financial Aid, etc.).
Additional geographic information, including students’ home addresses, was gathered from the U.S. Census, American Community Survey, and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and merged with students as well.
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The end of the 2019-20 school year was a stark contrast to the beginning. With the COVID-19 pandemic restricting in-person college courses across the country and the world, many colleges and universities had to scramble to still provide a quality education amid a public health and economic crisis. Most faculty taught courses online for the first time, while advisors and success coaches had to quickly adapt to support students struggling with the academic and mental health obstacles thrown their way. This disruption to the educational process impacted Course Completion and Persistence during the first year of this study. |
Persistence gaps between white and minority male students decreased between Historical and Impact Terms. This decrease means that minority male Persistence rates are closer to white male Persistence rates than previously noted. The closing of the gap is evidence that use of Student Success & Engagement through MMSI helped mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic on minority male Persistence rates. The efforts of staff to reach minority male students should continue in the hopes of eliminating these gaps.
Part of the disappearance in the gap is due to improved minority male performance, but in some cases also decreasing white male performance. In addition, while medium- and high-risk minority and white male students improved their Persistence across Historical and Impact Terms, the Persistence rates for low-risk males decreased.
Persistence gaps between white and minority male students decreased between Historical and Impact Terms. The closing of the gap is evidence that use of Student Success & Engagement through MMSI helped mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic on minority male Persistence rates.
Course Completion rates also decreased between Historical and Impact Terms, though overall remain high at 7 percent. Part-time and high-risk minority males were particularly behind their white male counterparts, as were those taking online courses. All these gaps decreased from Historical Terms, but still have room for improvement.
These Course Completion (and Persistence) gaps are interesting considering the COVID pandemic, which may have encouraged faculty to be sensitive to the strain students were under when courses moved online in March. Faculty may have passed students when previous rates might suggest those students would not pass their course. However, this generosity would not have been able to improve Persistence rates the following term, suggesting positive efforts by faculty could have staved off some of the worst impacts of the pandemic on Persistence.
As we continue to follow these student cohorts over the next several years, our research will be expanded to not just focus on outcome impact, but to develop more insight into coaching relationships, academic pathways, how engaged students are with their support network at each institution, and specific interventions that had the greatest impact. While the initial results are encouraging and suggest that progress is being made, a better understanding of engagement levels, barriers and interventions will lead to strategic recommendations on how to best serve Minority Male students within the North Carolina Community College system.
As we continue to follow these student cohorts over the next several years, our research will be expanded to not just focus on outcome impact, but to develop more insight into coaching relationships, academic pathways, how engaged students are with their support network at each institution, and specific interventions that had the greatest impact. While the initial results are encouraging and suggest that progress is being made, a better understanding of engagement levels, barriers and interventions will lead to strategic recommendations on how to best serve Minority Male students within the North Carolina Community College system.
