UT System hosts summit to improve student success

DALLAS—Leaders from The University of Texas System and its eight academic institutions gathered in Dallas Sept. 22-23 to officially launch the Student Success Quantum Leap.

Proposed by Chancellor William H. McRaven, the Quantum Leaps are critical, strategic initiatives to improve higher education, research and health care for the people of Texas and beyond. Through the Quantum Leaps, the UT System plans to intensify efforts to improve student success at all institutions by employing innovative partnerships, programs and technology to ensure students receive the tools and support they need to stay on the path to graduation.

At the Student Success Summit, UT academic leaders put the spotlight on evidence-based strategies aimed at removing barriers and scaling best practices that lead to student success. Discussions centered on renewed efforts to help more UT students graduate on time and with reduced student debt.

“Student success is a primary focus of the UT System, and all UT institutions are engaged day in and day out with helping their students succeed, both in the classroom and beyond,” said Rebecca Karoff, Ph.D., associate vice chancellor for academic affairs.

The summit served as the launch of this crucial initiative, where institutional and System leaders explored campus action plans, the identification of metrics and necessary resources, and a sustained process for cultivating shared responsibility for student success.

“The Student Success Summit leveraged the extraordinary brainpower of the UT System to help our students reach their educational and personal goals,” Karoff said.

UT System Regent Sara Martinez Tucker and Deputy Chancellor David Daniel, Ph.D., were among the many thought leaders who discussed possible solutions including: 

• revising financial aid distribution so that no student drops out of college because of finances;
• developing student engagement programs on campus to increase a sense of belonging;
• and improving student advising to provide clear pathways to degree completion.

Chancellor William H. McRaven said he included Student Success as a Quantum Leap to make it clear to everyone – institutional leadership, faculty, students and the world at large – that serving students and providing them every opportunity for success is the primary mission of the UT System.

“We won’t get there overnight. It’s going to take a sustained, concerted, system-wide effort to move the needle,” McRaven said. “But move the needle we will. We owe our students, and the state of Texas, nothing less.”

About The University of Texas System

Educating students, providing care for patients, conducting groundbreaking basic, applied and clinical research, and serving the needs of Texans and the nation for more than 130 years, The University of Texas System is one of the largest public university systems in the United States. With 14 institutions and an enrollment of more than 221,000, the UT System confers more than one-third of the state’s undergraduate degrees, educates almost two-thirds of the state’s health care professionals annually and accounts for almost 70 percent of all research funds awarded to public institutions in Texas. The UT System’s operating budget for FY 2017 is $17.9 billion, including $3 billion in sponsored programs funded by federal, state, local and private sources. With more than 20,000 faculty – including Nobel laureates and many members of the National Academies – and nearly 80,000 health care professionals, researchers, student advisors and support staff, the UT System is one of the largest employers in the state.