Kentucky's 'Project Graduate' Gets National Recognition

LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 5, 2012) — A statewide initiative to improve retention and graduation rates in higher education in Kentucky has received a national award from higher education consulting firm Noel-Levitz for developing one of the “most successful, state-of-the-art retention programs in use today.”

Project Graduate is a statewide initiative designed to recruit, retain, and graduate returning adult learners with 80 or more credit hours but no bachelor's degree. The project is a partnership among the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) and all public four-year institutions in Kentucky, including the University of Kentucky, which has provided enthusiastic support and leadership to the program since it began.

“UK is very pleased to be a part of Project Graduate because this initiative is helping more students realize their academic and professional career goals,” said Don Witt, UK's vice provost for enrollment management. "Project Graduate represents a true collaborative effort across the state of Kentucky with institutions of higher learning and CPE coming together for the benefit of students across the Commonwealth and beyond.”

The components of the program include campus action plans that outline the high-touch student incentives and services designed to recruit and retain students, highly skilled Project Graduate advocates who serve adult students at each campus, and a Project Graduate team to implement campus-specific action plans.

Project Graduate was launched by campuses in the spring term of 2008. As of spring 2011, 605 former students had earned their bachelor’s degrees through the program, and another 651 adults were enrolled in fall 2011.

“Project Graduate is a widely respected returning adult learner initiative that is improving the quality of lives of our former students and their families, increasing the quality of Kentucky’s workforce, and helping raise educational attainment levels across the Commonwealth,” CPE President Bob King said.

Noel-Levitz, the leading higher education consulting firm specializing in student retention, recruitment, financial aid, market research, and communications development, announced the winners of the 2012 Lee Noel and Randi Levitz Retention Excellence Awards on Monday, July 2. The awards recognize innovative campus retention programs that have encouraged students to succeed and persevere through graduation.

“Each year these awards recognize the most successful, state-of-the-art retention programs in use today,” said Tim Culver, vice president of Noel-Levitz. “This year’s honorees have made great strides in student retention, and we are pleased to recognize them for these efforts. The winners demonstrated measurable institutional outcomes, originality and creativity, as well as excellent use of resources and adaptability for use at other institutions.”

The Retention Excellence Awards Program was established by Noel-Levitz in 1989 to honor outstanding achievements in student retention by colleges and universities throughout the United States and Canada. Winners are selected by leading campus-based retention practitioners. Case studies of the winning schools are available on www.noellevitz.com/awards.