Mapping the Student Journey to Improve Post-Traditional Student Success

How can you understand the current journey of post-traditional students and identify changes to courses, student services, technology, and facilities to enable student success? This session will answer this question using a case study of Metropolitan State University's work with brightspot strategy to understand and improve their student experience—during COVID-19 and beyond it. Together, they used an inclusive process and proven tools to authentically engage students, faculty, and staff. An online survey, interviews, focus groups, and workshops identified problems and solutions including orientation, scheduling, career/curricular integration, professional development, and community building. By walking through the process, tools, and outcomes from the case study with moments of reflection, discussion, and application throughout, participants will get a roadmap and lessons learned to improve the student experience at their institution, particularly as they seek to better support more diverse students and close equity gaps by race and background.