Leeward Community College has been chosen as a “Rising Star” in the 2013 Starfish 360 Awards Program. This distinction is given to institutions that have launched the Starfish system within the past year and have already demonstrated measurable outcomes with outstanding accomplishments utilizing the Starfish community in areas of student success and retention.
Since Leeward CC integrated the Starfish system into its Maka’ala (“with eyes wide open”) initiative last year, the number of referrals made to campus services has doubled, and the number of faculty making referrals increased by 57 percent. Other impressive stats include:
- Total degrees and certificates up from 732 in 2009 to 1281 in 2012
- 50% increase in degrees earned from 2009 to 2012, 75% increase in degrees and certificates combined
- 12% increase in median GPA for first-time full-time students
- 8.2% increase in earned credits per term 2009-2012
- 18% drop in withdrawal rates for first-time full-time students 2009-2012
- 10% increase in successful course completion rates for first-time, full-time students 2009-2012
Students, whose Starfish referral resulted in an intervention, achieved C or better grades in the courses in question at twice the rate of students referred but for whom an intervention was not made.
“Starfish has allowed us to implement a campus-wide early alert system and to move our counseling and retention support away from traditional academic advising toward a case-management model to help promote individ ual student success within the semester,” said Chancellor Manny Cabral.
“Other UHCC campuses are following suit through the use of C3T funds to purchase Starfish for all students at all community college campuses in the state,” said Dean of Student Services Chris Manaseri, who also thanked the faculty and critical support staff, such as Kami Kato and Therese Nakadomari, for their implementation efforts. “We see this as a major step toward implementing more best practices among the UHCCs,” he added.
Starfish Retention Solutions CEO David Yaskin said: “The Starfish 360 Awards Program recognizes the innovation that is possible when institutions combine people, process, and technology to make a difference in the lives of students. We continue to be inspired by our clients’ success stories, and we’re proud that the Starfish system is helping them achieve amazing outcomes. Congratulations to the Award Winners, Rising Stars and all the finalists!”
Rising Star recipients each receive cash prizes to support the ongoing development of their student success programs.