FR 4.1 Student Achievement

The institution evaluates success with respect to student achievement consistent with its mission.  Criteria may include enrollment data; retention, graduation, course completion, and job placement rates; state licensing examinations; student portfolios; or other means of demonstrating achievement of goals

Compliance                     ___ Non-Compliance

 

Narrative

Savannah State University (SSU) evaluates success with respect to student achievement consistent with its mission. 

At the institutional level, evaluation of success with respect to student achievement utilizes both quantitative and qualitative measures which relate to the University’s Mission and Strategic Priorities. These quantitative and qualitative measures are used to ensure that the University achieves its vision of a “value-added” education for its diverse student population. SSU’s Strategic Priority One focuses on Engagement and Achievement through research, scholarship, and creative inquiry. Priority Two focuses on Workforce Development; and Priority Three focuses on Global Education Experience. Assessment of retention and graduation data, professional certification exam results, job placement data, data on student scholarships and fellowships, and study abroad experiences for students also align with these three strategic priorities.

Engagement and Achievement through Research, Scholarship, and Creative Inquiry

A significant and growing area of student achievement at SSU is participation in research and research training, under the supervision of faculty research mentors, particularly in STEM areas. SSU has established a strong research training platform through external funding from NSF, NIH, DoEd, DOD, NOAA, and other agencies, which has funded scholarships, stipends, development of research/computer labs, and student and faculty travel to present at conferences.  Current major funded research training programs include the National Science Foundation/University of Georgia (NSF/UGA) Peach State Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (PSLSAMP) Program and the National Institutes of Health Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (NIH RISE) and Minority Access for Research Careers (NIH MARC) Programs, which together support approximately 50 merit scholars each year. Over the period 2012-2013 to 2015-2016, these and other programs funded over 150 scholarships and fellowships per year with a budget of approximately $1 million.

 

Through these programs, in summers 2013-2015, approximately 20-25 students from the university conducted summer training in off-site labs. In addition, research training is increasingly integrated into curricula and labs.  Student achievements in research are showcased each year at the Annual Research Conference (ARC), which is the University’s premier event to recognize graduate and undergraduate research. Each year, over 150 students present their research, from all academic disciplines campus-wide, from both funded research grants and curricular research.   Summaries of the proceedings from the 2015 and 2016Research Day Conferences are attached.  

Participation in research training is a primary factor in motivating and preparing SSU students to be admitted to labs of research intensive universities for summer training, to co-author manuscripts with their faculty mentors, and to apply for admission to graduate programs and to enter STEM careers.  Research achievements of high-performing graduate and undergraduate students are also profiled in Arising, SSU's Research Magazine , published annually since 2013.  

 

Workforce Development

Job placement data are collected and tracked for a number of units on the Savannah State University campus, as well as by the Office of University Career Services.  The College of Business Administration reports that between 50% and 70% of students graduating with degrees in all business administration disciplines are employed in their field or a related field within one year of graduation.  The table below provides percentages of Business Administration students employed within one year of graduation by graduation year cohort from 2012-2013 through 2015-2016:

 

Table 4.1a College of Business Administration (COBA) Job Placement Rates - 2012-2013—2015-16

 

Graduation Cohort	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Job Placement Rate	51% (55/108)	46% (50/108)	70% (62/88)	66% (45/68)

 

The Engineering Technology Program also tracks its graduates to determine those who have been employed in their fields within one year of graduation. The table below provides percentages of Engineering Technology students employed within one year of graduation by graduation year cohort from 2012-2013 through 2015-2016:

 

Table 4.1b Engineering Technology Job Placement Rates - 2012-2013—2015-16

 

Graduation Cohort	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Job Placement Rate of Respondents for CET	100%  (8/8)	100% (8/8)	100% (5/5 )	100% (6/6)
Job Placement Rate of Respondents for EET	86%  (5/6)	100% (10/10)	67% (6/9)	80% (4/5)
Job Placement Rate of Respondents for CST	90%  (9/10)	89% (8/9)	86% (12/14)	78% (7/9)

 

As the table above indicates, job placement for the three Engineering Technology Programs (CET-Civil Engineering Technology; EET-Electronics Engineering Technology; and CST-Computer Science Technology) offered by Savannah State University ranges from 67% to 100% over the past four years.  While the goal is always 100% job placement for all students in all programs, the high rate of employment of students in these technology-focused programs is a strong indicator of the achievement of these students, both academically and professionally.

 

The School of Teacher Education (SOTE) is a relatively new unit on the Savannah State University campus, formed in 2013-2014 after approval by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) to offer teacher preparation in Biology (6-12), Mathematics (6-12), and Engineering Technology (P-12).  Preliminary data on the first graduates who added teacher preparation to their degree programs at SSU indicate that those graduates successfully attained teacher certification and are well prepared and sought after by school districts with a 100% placement rate in their teaching discipline after graduation, as outlined in Table 4.1c below:     

 

Table 4.1c School of Teacher Education Job Placement Rates - 2013-2014

 

Discipline	# Graduates	# Placed	Rate
Biology with Secondary Biology Teacher Certification	1	1	100%
Mathematics with Secondary Mathematics Teacher Certification	1	1	100%
Civil Engineering Technology with Secondary Engineering Technology Education Teacher Certification	1	1	100%

 

In addition to Job Placement Rates, units of the SSU campus also provide data on the job placement and graduate school attendance of the graduates of their programs.  The Marine Sciences Department is an example of an academic unit which tracks students post-graduation and which has a high student achievement record in this regard.  It tracks the number of graduates from both the BS and MS programs who advance to graduate programs and professional careers in their fields.  See the Marine Sciences website which shows this data:

http://www.savannahstate.edu/cost/nat-science/marine-sci-grads.shtml

 

Global Education Experience

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program offers grants for U.S. citizen undergraduate students of limited financial means to pursue academic studies or credit-bearing, career-oriented internships abroad. Such international exchange is intended to better prepare U.S. students to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy and interdependent world.  Savannah State University students have been recipients of Gilman Scholarships for the past three academic years, as indicated in the table below:

 

Table 4.1d Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program Recipients

 

Academic Year	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Number of Gilman Scholarship Winners	5	7	7

The goal for Gilman Scholarships for the past three years has been five students per year, which was exceeded by two students per year for 2014-15 and 2015-16, for a total of seven students each year.

 

Additional Student Achievement Measures

The following table includes institutional measures of achievement and acceptable thresholds for each measure as additional indicators of student success and achievement at Savannah State University. These institutional measures, Savannah State University’s level of success on these measures, and students' achievement on these measures are discussed in the following narrative. 

 

Table 4.1e Student Achievement Measures and Thresholds

 

Student Achievement Measures	Acceptable Threshold
Six-Year Graduation Rate	30%
One-Year Retention Rate	70%
Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) Content Assessment Annual Pass Rate	100%
Annual Award of Nationally Competitive Undergraduate Scholarships	100
Annual Award of Nationally Competitive Graduate  Fellowships	25

 

Graduation and Retention Rates

The graduation numbers, the ultimate indicator of success in meeting student achievement, are tracked by the Office of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment (IRPA) on a program level (Degrees Awarded by Program: AY2011 - AY2017) while graduation rates for the institution as a whole are also tracked and compared to the University System of Georgia (USG) (Six-Year Graduation Rates: 1991 - 2010) . Graduation rates for individual programs are not generally tracked since a large majority of students switch majors prior to graduation making the initial freshman cohort not a good indicator of program attempts.

Table 4.1f below shows first year retention rates Savannah State University One-Year Retention Rates: 1992 - 2015 and graduation rates for SSU compared to other institutions.

Table 4.1f First-Year Retention Rates and Graduation Rates of Savannah State and Comparator Institutions

	Savannah State	Fort Valley State	Francis Marion	Elizabeth City
2012-2013
First-Year Retention Rate (2011 Cohort)	72	58	65	79
Six-Year Graduation Rate   (2006 Cohort)	32	28	42	43
2013-2014
First-Year Retention Rate (2012 Cohort)	71	60	67	73
Six-Year Graduation Rate   (2007 Cohort)	29	30	41	42
2014-2015
First-Year Retention Rate (2013 Cohort)	67	57	67	72
Six-Year Graduation Rate   (2008 Cohort)	28	32	41	49
2015-2016
First-Year Retention Rate (2014 Cohort)	62	78	68	68
Six-Year Graduation Rate   (2009 Cohort)	27	29	42	51

 

As indicated in the table above, first-year retention rates have been declining for the past three years.  While the recent trend has been downward, the average first-year retention rate for the nine cohort years from 2007 through 2015 is 68.8%, within slightly over a percentage point of the acceptable threshold for retention rates of 70%.

To address this trend, the university has fully implemented the Education Advisory Board’s (EAB) Student Success Collaborative (SSC), as of Fall 2016, to better develop a profile of incoming students to identify at-risk students from the beginning of their matriculation at the university and to track current students who experience academic issues so interventions can take place to get them back on track academically.  SSU’s Center for Academic Success (CAS) will be an integral part of this strategy by providing proactive advisement and tutoring for new students. Another of the components of the SSC that has been revisited to better track incoming freshmen, transfer students, and continuing students is the Grades First Early Alert System.  

Professional Certification Examinations

 

The teacher preparation programs in the School of Teacher Education (SOTE) are examples of programs where SSU graduates must pass state mandated examinations for certification for employment in their field.    

Georgia Assessment for the Certification of Educators (GACE)

 

The Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators® (GACE) is Georgia’s state-approved educator certification assessment program. These computer-delivered assessments have been developed by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) and Educational Testing Service (ETS). The purpose of the GACE assessments is to help the GaPSC ensure that candidates have the knowledge and skills needed to perform the job of an educator in Georgia’s public schools.  Savannah State University uses scores on the GACE examinations and measures of academic achievement for students seeking certification to teach in the State of Georgia, and via reciprocity, in public and private schools across the nation.  Below are GACE pass rates for the examinations taken between the 2013-2014 and 2015-2016 academic years.  

Table 4.1g Georgia Assessment for the Certification of Educators (GACE) Pass Rates 2013-2014 – 2015-2016

   

 

Annual Award of Nationally Competitive Undergraduate Scholarships and Fellowships

 

Savannah State University has been successful in seeking and securing external funding, especially in the STEM disciplines, and many of the grants and contracts that the university has been awarded, particularly in STEM areas, have been education and training programs, which have provided support for undergraduate and graduate students.  Table 4.1h below lists some of the major awards to SSU that have provided support to academically talented students at both undergraduate and graduate levels.  These student awards are merit based; students are selected who meet specified criteria for GPA, faculty recommendations, and career interests.

 

Table 4.1h Federally Funded Scholarships/Fellowship Programs

 

#	Agency	Program	Dept.	# Graduate Fellowships per year	# UG scholarships per year	Term
1	NSF	PSLSAMP	COST*		37	2012-2017
2	NSF	HBCU-UP	COST		25	2009-2017
3	NSF	PRISM	COST		40	2009-2016
4	NIH	RISE	COST		15	2012-2017
5	NIH	MARC	COST		5	2012-2017
6	NIH	NIBIB	COST		13	2011-2016
7	NIH	RIMI	COST		10	2009-2016
8	DOE	Environmental  Justice	COST		6	2013-2017
9	DOT/FHA	Eisenhower	COST		5	2016-2017
10	NSF	REU	Marine Science		10	2015-2020
11	NOAA	Title VII	Marine Science	3		2009-2016
12	NSF	EDGE	Marine Science		30	2009-2015
13	NOAA/UMES	LMRCSC	Marine Science	3	3	2011-2016
14	NSF	GK-12	Marine Science	5		2009-2016
15	HRSA	Behavioral Health Workforce Training	Social Work	15		2014-2017
16	HHS/GSU	Title IV-E	Social Work	8	3	2015-2016
17	NSF	Noyce Teacher Scholarship	SOTE**		5	2014-2019
Total				34	207

*COST College of Sciences and Technology

**SOTE School of Teacher Education

 

In addition to these federally funded scholarship programs, SSU’s academically talented undergraduate students may qualify for the State of Georgia Hope and Zell Scholarships.

 

Table 4.1i below shows the number of SSU students who received Hope/Zell Scholarships over the past 4 years:

 

Table 4.1i  Number of SSU Hope/Zell Scholarships, 2012-2013 to 2015-2016

 

 

Other Indicators of Success With Respect to Student Academic Achievement

 

Honors Convocation

 

Public acknowledgement of student success is embodied in the designation of individuals as honor students. SSU follows the traditional practice of acknowledging publicly the high scholastic achievement of its students. Events such as the annual Honors Convocation serve to emphasize student achievement.  This event is held in the spring of each academic year, during which the top students of each college and school–Sciences and Technology, Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, Business Administration, and Teacher Education–speak to their peers and fellow honor students. Over 2,000 students in the 2015-2016 academic year were recognized for their academic achievements.

 

Acknowledgement of Outstanding Alumni

The SSU Alumni Association demonstrates and recognizes alumni achievement, and therefore former students’ achievements, on their website. The bi-annually published Savannah State University Magazine regularly features alumni achievements.

Conclusion

Savannah State University evaluates success with respect to student achievement consistent with its mission and strategic priorities.  Engagement in research and associated activities, workforce development, and global education experiences directly address the University’s Strategic Priorities, which in turn directly support the institution’s mission. Further evidence in the form of certification examination results, job placement records, awards of undergraduate scholarships and fellowships, and recognition of student achievement is also provided.   

Supporting Documentation and Evidence:

·          Savannah State University Enrollment by College: 2001 - 2016

·          Savannah State University Degrees Awarded by Program: AY2011 - AY2017

·          Six-Year Graduation Rates: 1991 – 2010

·          Education Advisory Board's (EAB) Student Success Collaborative (SSC)

·          Savannah State University One-Year Retention Rates: 1992 – 2015

·          Savannah State University GACE Pass Rates and Job Placement Data (2013-2016)

·          Savannah State University College of Business Administration (COBA) Job Placement Rates - 2012-2013-2015-16

·          Savannah State University Marine Science Job Placement Data (2012-2016)

·          Savannah State University Honors Convocation

·          Savannah State University ARISING Magazine

·          Annual Research Conference, 2015

·          Annual Research Conference, 2016

·          Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarships for International Study

·          School of Teacher Education Robert Noyce Scholarship Program