Commonwealth Campus student success, retention among trustee committee updates

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — At its March 21 off-cycle meeting the Penn State Board of Trustees Committee on Academic Affairs, Research and Student Life heard strategies for student success at the University’s Commonwealth Campuses.  

The discussion, led by Matt Melvin, vice president for enrollment management, and Margo DelliCarpini, vice president for Commonwealth Campuses and executive chancellor, was part of an ongoing effort to update the board on enrollment trends and strategies, with a focus on retention and graduation rates at the Commonwealth Campuses. 

The overall retention rate at the Commonwealth Campuses is 77.3%, which is higher than institutions of similar market positions and profile, Melvin said. He stressed retention rates and graduation rates are largely a factor of a student’s academic profile and financial profile, and that goals and targets need to be set within the context of Commonwealth Campuses’ market position and profile.  

Melvin discussed current challenges with the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process — which have delayed federal financial aid offers to prospective students applying to institutions across the country. This, Melvin said, especially impacts students at Commonwealth Campuses. He outlined several of the University’s efforts to minimize the disruption for students, including offering base merit awards, expanding the Discover Award program and moving back the deposit deadline to give families more time. 

“Obviously when we talk about enrollment management, certainly there is an admissions function,” Melvin said. “But I always say enrollments are built on the back of retention, not recruitment.” 

Melvin also noted that Penn State is striving to build a retention strategy and practice centered on the four pillars of profile, progression, process and brand promise. 

"I’m more interested in progression than retention,” Melvin said. “Our goal isn’t to retain students, it’s to graduate them.” 

DelliCarpini shared how those pillars drive retention strategies at the Commonwealth Campuses, underscoring Melvin’s point about progression and the critical need for clearly navigable career pathways.  

She noted that successful retention and progression starts before students arrive on campus, through key engagements such as the Summer Bridge and Jump Start programs and New Student Orientation. As students progress in their academic journey, continued support and resources through advising, tutoring and peer mentoring is critical, she said, as is proactively identifying at-risk students and intervening early.  

DelliCarpini added that student success and retention efforts at the Commonwealth Campuses are centered on: 

• High-impact practices inside and outside the classroom;  

• Holistic student support services and strategies;  

• Strategic external partnerships to provide access to internships, co-ops and service learning; and 

• An institutional focus on student success 

“We want to make sure that everybody’s involved in retention,” DelliCarpini said. “It’s not one person’s job or one office’s job, but it’s our job as a Commonwealth Campus and as an academic community.” 

She highlighted several successful programs and initiatives at individual Commonwealth Campuses as examples, including academic coaches and “Lion Guidez” peer mentors at Penn State Hazleton and a first-year bridge program for underrepresented engineering students at Penn State Berks.  

DelliCarpini also noted that financial holds are one of the most significant barriers to academic progress, while food and housing insecurity remain as persistent issues facing students at Penn State and across the country. She highlighted several programs that specifically address at-risk populations, including the FirstGen Living Learning Community at Penn State Abington; the WE cARE Pantry at Penn State Harrisburg; and the Chancellor’s Commission for Student Success by Design at Penn State Brandywine. 

The impact that the holistic approach and sense of belonging has on students “really does change trajectories,” DelliCarpini said. 

The Penn State Board of Trustees Committee on Academic Affairs, Research and Student Life was one of four board committees to hold off-cycle meetings on March 21. Read about other updates heard by the committees here.