Blackburn College’s average retention rate of freshman students is 65.9 percent, which falls in between the national average of 64.8 to 70.8 percent, according to the Director of Institutional Research Kristi Nelms. Some students are under the impression that Blackburn has an obscenely low freshman retention rate, but because of the small population of students; it is easier to notice when students do not return. Larger four-year private schools have a similar, if not lower, freshman retention rate.
Several Blackburn faculty and staff members attended a retreat on Friday, Sept. 15, and Saturday, Sept. 16, to discuss retention rates and ways to improve them. The retreat was hosted by the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education. The goal of the program is to gather data on retention rates to improve student success.
Nelms organized the retreat with the Gardner Institute to collect information on which freshmen have a higher retention rate. “White students tend to have a better retention rate than students of color,” Nelms said. “Dual credit students retain better because they already have a head-start, students living on campus have a higher retention rate than commuters.”
Sophomore pre-medicine biology major Haley Simmons knew a handful of students that didn’t stay. “Most students left because of the work program,” Simmons said, “and they either got too many write-ups and couldn’t stay at the school without a job, or they couldn’t handle their hours and class schedules.”
Chemistry professor Dr. Mark Armstrong, who attended the retreat, explained that the purpose was to “collect mountains of data.” He noticed the biggest trend based on the data is that students just are not prepared for college academically, socially and have trouble with the work program.
The retreat also focused on providing resources for freshmen and first-year students in order to make them more equipped to juggle work and academics, all while still having a social life. To accomplish this goal, there is a new program this year called “FYT Cohort” where students are taught time management and other skills to prepare them for this new chapter in their lives.
One of the tentative strategies that Armstrong took away from the retreat was to include more professional assistance for students including counseling and athletic training. He clarified that “with enough time and enough money,” the retention rate should increase.