APLU Names South Alabama 2022 Degree Completion Award Finalist

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Posted on October 27, 2022

Lance Crawford

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The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has named the University of South Alabama a finalist for its 2022 Degree Completion Award.

The University launched a Student Success Team in 2010. Since then, it has improved four-year graduation rates by 131 percent, while seeing degree completion increases each year since that initial cohort.

“This award showcases the intentional and continuous hard work of so many people,” said Dr. Nicole Carr, associate vice president of student academic success. “Together with our students, we celebrate their graduations. These individual moments reinforce our ‘whys’ and inspire our team to find more solutions to continue to remove barriers for degree completion.”

The annual Degree Completion Award is open to all APLU members. It identifies, recognizes and rewards institutions that employ innovative approaches to improve degree completion while ensuring educational quality. A panel of outside reviewers examined the applications to determine the finalists. The award winner will be announced at the APLU Annual Meeting, Nov. 6-8 in Denver, Colorado.

“Ensuring students complete a life-changing college education is at the very heart of public research universities’ mission,” said APLU President Mark Becker. “Congratulations to this year’s Degree Completion Award finalists. They have made significant strides in student success, particularly among students from underrepresented backgrounds. Their efforts deserve broader attention.” 

The University of South Alabama is one of only four finalists in the nation. The other institutions are Florida Atlantic University, the University of Texas at San Antonio and Virginia Commonwealth University.

South’s Student Success Team uses data and information to bridge institutional silos, create completion improvement programs and expand its culture of student success. By adopting a comprehensive, student-focused philosophy, South focuses on removing barriers and continuously improving student experiences to help them persist and complete a degree. The University continues to renew its commitment to serving the community and increasing the enrollment of a diverse student body, including students of color, Pell-eligible students, and students who are served through our close partnerships with regional community colleges that support them as they move between institutions.

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