Conference Session

FPD1 - Early Success and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alicia Boudreaux, Louisiana Tech University; Kelly Crittenden, Louisiana Tech University; James Nelson, Louisiana Tech University; Galen Turner, Louisiana Tech University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

in the fall. The FrEP project, supported by NSF STEP and S-STEM grants,continues to provide scholarships for these FrEP students through their freshman year. OurIntegrated Curricula are structured such that students register for a block of core classes, and theS-STEM student cohort comprises one of these blocks. Throughout the academic year, studentmentors are assigned to this cohort to conduct Supplemental Instruction sessions each week.At present, 85% of this initial FrEP cohort has been retained in a STEM discipline. Data from theprevious three years show an average freshman to sophomore STEM retention rate for a similarcohort of 59%. These students also have displayed more confidence, positive attitudes, respect,and a greater