Related articles and links |  1 of 3

Jennifer Martin looked forward to attending a Christian college. After graduating from a public high school where she participated in Young Life, Martin sought a refuge from the world where she could be fed spiritually. "I thought it would be like a big summer camp, with everyone jumping up and down about God every day." Martin, a scholarship recipient, selected Eastern College in Saint Davids, Pennsylvania, largely because of its proximity to her home in Willow Grove.

But anticipation quickly turned to disillusionment. Four months into her first year, Martin seriously considered leaving. "I was feeling very disconnected at Eastern," she says. "I wasn't feeling I had found a niche." Martin is one of many Christian college students who contemplate leaving school. Research shows more Christian college students drop out before graduation than students at comparable private colleges: 47 percent of first-year Christian college students stay through graduation, compared to 53 percent at other private institutions.

Student retention is a worsening national problem at both private and public institutions, with rates declining 1 to 2 percent a year, according to Eastern College psychology professor Laurie Schreiner, director of the Coalition for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) Quality/ Retention Project. "Students are much more likely to shop around, to vote with their feet," she says.

Christian college students see themselves as consumers, Schreiner says, and will transfer to a public school or drop out altogether before considering another Christian college if they are unhappy with the product.

Some Christian colleges have been slow to recognize retention as a problem, relying instead on recruitment efforts to increase enrollments. Others have realized the challenge, but have not had the financial resources to tackle it.

FOCUS ON FACULTY: Now, though, institutions are trying to learn from one another how to keep their students in school. The CCCU recently surveyed 20,000 students at 79 member schools to find ways of increasing student retention. The survey measured students' satisfaction with their college experience as an indicator of their propensity to stay through graduation.

The survey indicates Christian college students are generally more satisfied with their educational experience than students at secular private colleges, which makes the dropout rate especially perplexing.

Although respondents indicated the greatest discontent with parking, food, and financial aid, they also reported dissatisfaction with academic advising. Retention experts are hoping a renewed focus on one-on-one interaction with faculty outside the classroom will help.

About 20 CCCU faculty and staff joined the largest-ever National Conference on Student Retention in New Orleans in July for training in mentoring students. "We need to see [advising] as more than course scheduling," Schreiner says.

Because of counsel from her adviser, Liddy Tuleja, Martin decided to remain at Eastern, despite having a boyfriend at Virginia Tech and her indecision on a major. Over coffee or during impromptu meetings after class, Tuleja says, "I would just listen and let her make her own decisions." Martin, who is a senior business major this fall, calls Tuleja both a mentor and friend.

Such time-intensive retention solutions come at a price for already overburdened faculty members. "You've got a full teaching load, you're expected to be on committees, preparing for classes, [doing] scholarly research," says Tuleja. "You're kind of a jack-of-all-trades." Most professors advise about 20 students. The best advisers can mentor as many as 40 at a time, but a larger advising load does not necessarily mean a larger paycheck.

next page... |  1 of 3

September 7 1998, Vol. 42, No. 10