Editor’s note: The description of the percentage of high school CCP students retained by the university was reworded to better reflect the situation.
Kent State is looking for ways to increase the number of College Credit Plus students who enroll in the university after high school graduation.
About 35 percent of high school student who participate in the CCP program at Kent State end up enrolling in the university after they graduate, according to university officials.
For spring 2024, the program hosts 3,142 high school students across the university’s eight campuses.
Sean Broghammer, the vice president for Enrollment Management, said students participating in the College Credit Plus do not always commit to Kent State after high school.
“Of the students who take them, about 35% to 40% enroll at Kent State,” he said. “In our minds, there’s room for opportunity there to work with those students and families a little bit closer than we currently do.”
According to the CCP website, College Credit Plus is a statewide program that allows high school students to take classes and earn credits that count towards both high school and college. This allows some students to earn an associates degree upon graduation from high school.
Though classes can be offered at one college, students are able to apply their credits towards another college according to the CCP website. This means that not all students who take a College Credit Plus class at a Kent State campus will attend the university after graduating high school.
“They have a higher propensity to pursue higher education,” Broghammer said. “I think it’s also just a very competitive group. These students are applying to Kent State, but they’re also applying to other public or private universities throughout Ohio or even out of state.”
Peggy Shadduck, the vice president for Regional Campuses, said the goal is to increase the number of students in the program who commit to KSU to 50% or 60%.
“If they took some CCP classes through the Salem campus and they stay with Kent State, they more often actually come to the Kent Campus,” she said, “and pursue a degree at the Kent campus.”
This creates greater financial challenges for regional campuses, Shadduck said.
Classes are free for students that attend the program in-person at a public university, according to the CCP website. There may be limited fees for students taking an online class or at a private university.
Shadduck said the program does not generate enough revenue to match its expenses. The situation made is more difficult for regional campuses because CCP students make up approximately 25% of their enrollment.
Despite this, law requires the university to offer College Credit Plus classes.
Shadduck said the program is a valuable opportunity for high school students and the university has to do a better job convincing them to stay after graduation.
“How can we increase their knowledge of the opportunities available via Kent State and why this might be a really good choice for them,” she said. “That’s probably our primary direction that we’re trying to go. We just haven’t necessarily put in sufficient effort to let them know they belong with us. You are one of us, now stay one of us.”
Shadduck said increasing student retainment is part of a larger plan to streamline the regional campuses system as a more collaborative group.
“We are working together as a group of campuses in a way that is more pronounced and is stronger than we have done in the last roughly 10 years or so,” she said.
Michael Neenan is a beat reporter. Contact him at [email protected].
Jen de Jong • Mar 4, 2024 at 1:04 pm
My son will complete 3 years of CCP at Kent (main campus) and it is currently his first choice. However, he will also be applying to other engineering schools. Overall, we have been really impressed with everyone he’s interacted with in both the CCP and engineering departments. Like most students, his final decision will come down to money and opportunity. I would like to see more outreach to CCP students, things like a CCP/commuter lounge and social events and seminars, a CCP Honors Academy like Akron has, and scholarships for CCP students who matriculate to Kent. The CCP Stem Experience is a fantastic example of the kind of opportunities that attract CCP students to Kent. (Dr. Selinger is a fantastic asset to Kent). We will be watching the growth and reputation of the engineering programs carefully over the next few years.
Sara Legg • Mar 4, 2024 at 11:20 am
Kent state main campus lacks big time in the recruiting department with college visits. Everywhere else my kids felt wanted Kent state (both kids different years) threw them into tours that had nothing to do with the degree they were pursing. My son went past the building… the tour guide was like sorry it’s locked and your the only one in the group… everywhere else they got shirts, fed and In Depth visits including visits with the department they were going into. Even a branch of Kent was better than main campus on this… I am a lifelong Kent resident and alumni – neither of them were impressed with the visit to main campus and not going there.