Assessing Undergraduate Success During COVID 19: A Multi Indicator, Equity Minded Institutional Analysis

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 1:45 pm - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Roundtable 3

Abstract

The COVID 19 pandemic disrupted higher education in unprecedented ways, raising critical questions about how institutions assess and define student success. This study examines four institutional indicators—four-year cumulative GPA, credit hours earned, annual retention, and four-year completion—using administrative data from eight cohorts of first-time, full-time bachelor’s degree-seeking students (2012–2019) at a private, urban, research university in the Midwest. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory and Tinto’s Theory of Student Departure, the analysis focuses on equity-relevant subgroups, including Pell Grant recipients, first-generation students, gender, and race/ethnicity. By applying a multi-indicator, equity-minded institutional approach, this study demonstrates how local assessment practices can reveal nuanced patterns of success and inform decision-making during periods of systemic disruption.

Author

• Ashley Burle, Saint Louis University