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Abstract

Just over half of the students who start a bachelor’s degree in the United States, fail to complete it within four years (National Center for Education Statistics, 2024). As a result, millions of people with some college no credential (SCNC) struggle with student loan debt, lower income, and the threat of default. In response, many colleges and universities are using high-impact practice (HIP) classroom pedagogy to help more students persist and graduate. This study investigated the effect of a HIP government course, known as Town Hall, on first-time-in-college (FTIC) students at a mid-sized, rural, R2 university in the southern United States. Entering FTIC cohorts from fall 2016 through fall 2022 were analyzed based on group differences (Town Hall participants v. non-participants). Additional analyses were conducted on a sub-set of FTIC students, who completed the Institutional Integration Survey. Results based on chi-square test of homogeneity, the Welsh-t test, and an ANCOVA showed that Town Hall participants had statistically significantly higher retention rates, graduation rates, and grade point averages than non-participants, particularly among academically underprepared students. Survey scores indicated that Town Hall participants were slightly more integrated than non-participants; however, the difference was not statistically significant. These results provide further support for the benefits of HIP course design to increase student retention and graduation, especially among those least prepared for the rigors of post-secondary education.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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