![]() ![]() “While we’re in a more populated area we’re also in a very, very competitive area,” Fiorentino said, adding that it’s a “misconception” that the school’s location is a significant advantage. West Chester’s other efforts include reaching out to students of color through a summer educational program while they are still in high school, as well as a mentoring program for athletes and an initiative geared toward male students of color. Many of the other PASSHE schools are located outside of metropolitan areas and must increase their recruiting radius as populations decline, particularly in western Pennsylvania, but West Chester sees some drawbacks to being so close to Philadelphia.įiorentino said that his university’s recruiting area might be heavily populated and close to New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware, but it is also near schools such as Villanova, Temple and the University of Pennsylvania. ![]() “It is much more efficient and effective for an institution to retain a student than it is to recruit a student,” Osgood said. Part of the focus shift, he said, was to support students from all academic backgrounds by offering student success coordinators, people trained to use student-specific data indicators to recognize when students might start struggling. Jeff Osgood, West Chester’s deputy provost and vice president for academic operations, said university officials realized more than a decade ago that students craved a “quality education experience.” “Retention,” Bernotsky said, “is critical.” West Chester’s retention rate runs at 85%, about 10% higher than the national average, said Laurie Bernotsky, the university’s executive vice president and provost. “We have a beautiful campus in an incredible college town,” he said. ![]() “We’re getting results because we’re producing a high-quality experience for our students.”īeing situated on a suburban Philadelphia campus dating to 1871 also doesn’t hurt, Fiorentino said. “We’re getting results at a much higher rate than our sister institutions around the state,” he said. ![]()
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