October 8th, 2024
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Hello, Bobcat parent and family members of first-year students,We are almost halfway through the term in the seventh week of the fall semester. I can't believe it! Today, I will focus on the positive side of retention -- why students stay in college. Students persist not only when they do well academically but also when they feel a sense of belonging. Think of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, in which belonging is one of the most fundamental psychological components in this theory of motivation. When students feel like they fit in, they join others in activities and form relationships. Students who make meaningful connections on campus are more likely to return for subsequent semesters. For many students, this isn't as straightforward as it seems. Our goal is for students to have a variety of touchpoints with MSU, so dropping out isn't a consideration when they experience a setback. We want MSU to feel like their home away from home. In Jabs, we are passionate about all things business and seek to challenge students, but we want them to enjoy their classes and feel at ease asking for support when they need it. Our co-curricular programs are designed to help students get a real-world sense of why and how business education can be crucial for the economic health and vitality of communities, regions, and countries. For example, earlier this month, we hosted Heidi Browning, the Chief Marketing Officer for the NHL, as a guest lecturer. She shared her story with over 500 students in attendance, as well as answered questions, and gave advice to those wishing to pursue sports marketing. And just last week, we hosted our annual Jabs Expo for first-year students (one of the activities pictured above). With an open-house style format in Jabs Hall, we created a fun, welcoming atmosphere for Jabs first-year students. The goal was for them to connect with the college, explore internships, study abroad and student clubs, support resources, and most importantly, meet faculty and learn about our four academic disciplines. All first-year business majors were required to attend each of these recent engaging events, so you might ask your student about them. MSU offers hundreds of student clubs and organizations. In fact, there's a club for everyone -- from gaming to backcountry skiing, community service to chess and ceramics. Clubs can be an excellent way for students to make friends and establish strong ties to MSU. Yet only about 15% of our first-year students will have joined a club by the end of their first year. And our seniors tell us that student clubs are critical to their college success and that we should require first-year students to join! That's it -- it's not rocket science. We just want to help our students find their people, their niche and their sense of belonging that makes MSU feel like home. Next week, I'm excited to offer ideas on how you can support your first-year student.
Sincerely,  Brenda Truman |
