Executive Director, College Access and Student Success
Boston University
Boston University’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions and its Wheelock College of Education and Human Development have collaborated to develop a research-based mentoring model that supports Boston University (BU) undergraduates who are historically underrepresented in higher education. The model initiates when BU Admissions engages potential partners by describing BU’s commitment to access and success and builds a pipeline with the organization’s students through targeted information sessions, student interviews, and in some cases, sponsored visits to campus. BU connects admitted students to Wheelock College’s Access and Student Success (CASS) office and CASS recruits and trains BU faculty and staff to serve as volunteer student mentors and actively supports them in this role. The scope of mentorship includes individual meetings and group activities designed to encourage students’ participation in the National Survey of Student Engagement’s (NSSE) High Impact Practices. This workshop will provide the rationale, context, and preliminary outcomes of this low-cost model, which is both scalable and replicable.
Guiding Questions:
1) How can pre-college nonprofits work with postsecondary partners to promote student success?
2) How can college admissions offices leverage partnerships to recruit historically underrepresented populations?
3) How do you work across campus to support student success, especially for historically
underrepresented populations?