Leaders at Nevada’s colleges and universities are setting goals to improve graduation rates.
All seven universities and colleges in Nevada have come up with their own plan to close the education gaps at their institution, and they expect to see results by 2025.
While each school has its unique challenges, during a Board of Regents meeting, Chancellor Thom Reilly with the Nevada System of Higher Education says remediation is top of mind. He also believes improving rates is a two-part strategy.
“What’s happening nationally — actually UNR is one of the leaders in this — is when individuals come to us. We put them in mainstream math and English, but we mandate tutoring around that,” Reilly said. “That is a model that is much more successful. The second part of that equation is pushing remedial back to high school.”
Overall, the Board of Regents wants all two and 4-year institutions to enroll more full-time students. They say research shows it’s more likely for them to graduate if they’re going to school full-time instead of part-time.
Another improvement is changing prerequisites to corequisites for math and English. They want students to have the academic support to enroll in college-level courses during the same semester directly.
To build momentum in the first year, the Board of Regents believe students should declare a major and take at least three classes in their program of study.
“We have to do a better job at graduating individuals that come to our institutions,” Reilly said. “There’s not much evidence to suggest just a little bit of college helps you out. You have to graduate.”
Graduation rates at UNLV and Nevada State College are below the national average. Both schools are 4-year institutions.
The same is true for CSN, which is a two-year school, but they hope to be better off by 2025.
For more information on each school’s plan for the next 6-years, check out the Student Success Summit report by going here.