Enhancement of Student Success, the Student Experience, and Campus Inclusion

In September, AGB hosted a webinar discussion concerning the Top Strategic Issues for Boards 2024-2025 report. This is the second in a series of blog posts that summarize the webinar discussion and explore the report’s recommendations. The webinar focused on several themes from the report, including enhancement of student success, the student experience, and campus inclusion. The webinar panelists explained that higher education governing boards play a critical role in building campus cultures that help students succeed. To achieve this, board members must understand their institution’s purpose, ask questions that focus on students’ needs, and support access to high-impact learning opportunities.

Below are some excerpts from the webinar, along with some of our additional recommendations for higher education governing boards.

How can boards help their institutions align inclusion efforts with their institution’s goals without alienating stakeholders?

Boards must understand what inclusion means in the context of their organization’s mission. Board members have an important responsibility to educate themselves about who their colleges, universities, and systems serve and how they can promote access to high-impact learning opportunities that benefit the entire student population.

AGB senior consultant and senior fellow R. Barbara Gitenstein advised boards to appreciate the concept of inclusivity, focusing particularly on the concept of underrepresentation. The rationale for inclusivity should be clarified—why is it better for there to be inclusivity in a program or at the institution? Who are we serving by increasing inclusivity (for example, students, communities, the democratic process)? Mary Papazian, AGB’s executive vice president, agreed that focusing on the meaning of inclusivity helps depoliticize it.

Barbara Gellman-Danley, president of the Higher Learning Commission, concurred and suggested that boards define “inclusion” according to their institution’s mission, which will keep the college, university, or system on course.

Carlton Brown, senior consultant at AGB and executive search consultant at AGB Search, recommended that board members learn about the origins of the inclusion effort. When students from underserved groups began to enter a broader range of colleges and universities after desegregation, institutions provided the support necessary to help them navigate an unfamiliar environment and the tools for academic and personal success. These elements included academic support targeted to students’ needs (including native language services for students for whom English was a second language, development of missing skills, and various steps to foster students’ feeling of belonging), enabling students with diverse financial and family needs to succeed.

How can boards ensure that access to new technology is equitable and truly meets the needs of all students?

Boards should know how their institution provides access to technological resources for students. Board members should be involved in funding decisions related to technology and be able to communicate with students to understand how well their needs are being met.

Boards should consider funding programs that support access to new technology for all students. For example, institutions may implement programs that support disadvantaged students in acquiring technological devices and in learning to use technology to enhance their academic progress, according to Gitenstein. Board members should ask for a full technology plan and then ask for information about students’ access to the available resources, added Gellman-Danley.

Brown agreed that boards should require institutional leaders to conduct periodic inventories of students’ access to technology based on their academic and personal requirements. Institutional leaders should periodically enable board members to interact with diverse groups of students on these and other issues critical to students’ success.

What has your experience in higher education accreditation taught you about board leadership and student success?

Board leadership is critical to the success of an organization. Accreditors know too well that distracted or dysfunctional boards are not focusing on the most important stakeholders—their students. It is imperative that boards be well-trained and engaged, knowledgeable about their important role, and in sync with the chief executive. Trustees can leave a very positive legacy during their tenure, if they focus on the student experience and support campus leaders committed to measures of a successful campus experience, noted Gellman-Danley.

What questions should boards be asking to stay actively engaged in enhancing student success and the campus experience?

Panelists said board members should ask detailed questions designed to help them understand how their college, university, or system defines and measures progress toward achieving these goals, which are critical parts of the institution’s or system’s mission.

Boards should know who the students are who actually attend their institution, not the students that they “think” or “hope” they serve. Therefore, it is important that boards receive accurate, descriptive data on student demographics and academic progress. The administration should be expected to develop trend data to share with the board to show progress in improving student-related metrics that have been identified as institutional goals. The board should ask questions about who and what office is responsible for addressing these goals, said Gitenstein.

Brown and Gellman-Danley offered a variety of questions for boards to consider, including:

• What are our goals for both enhancing student success and improving the campus experience?
• What are the components of our approach to enhancing student success?
• How do we know when we are successful?
• What are the metrics we use to measure student success?
• How are we doing on those metrics and what can be done for improvement?
• Have we conducted a cost/benefit analysis on the resources invested to achieve these goals?
• What are the expected benefits?

Conclusion

As Papazian observed, to elevate student success and enrich the campus experience, college and university boards must cultivate a culture of inquiry that aligns institutional goals with the aspirations of the student body. Boards should examine critically how they measure student success, looking beyond traditional metrics like graduation rates to include job placement, student engagement, and availability of mental health resources. Additionally, assessing resource allocation for student support services is essential, focusing on counseling, tutoring, and mentorship programs that meet the needs of diverse students. Inclusivity within the campus environment is paramount; boards must investigate how well their institutions embrace diversity and foster feelings of belonging among diverse groups of students.

Engaging students through feedback mechanisms, such as surveys and town halls, ensures informed decision-making. Further, integrating technology effectively and fostering community partnerships can create enriching experiences for students. By addressing these issues, college, university, and system boards can strengthen their governance roles while demonstrating a steadfast commitment to student success and to ensuring that the campus experience provides a vibrant learning environment for all students.

Mary Papazian is AGB’s executive vice president.

Carlton Brown is a senior consultant at AGB and an executive search consultant at AGB Search.

Barbara Gellman-Danley is president of the Higher Learning Commission.

R. Barbara Gitenstein is a senior fellow and senior consultant at AGB.