Alexandra Graves selected for Student Success Champions Program

Alexandra Graves, Goucher College’s associate director of student success, was one of 16 people selected to participate in the inaugural Student Success Champions Program, sponsored by the Center of Inquiry and Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium (HEDS). 

As a member of the newly formed Office of Retention & Student Success within the Enrollment Management team, Graves has led the way with Navigate, the college’s student success software, by rolling out several new care units, executing a variety of reporting features, and implementing other software enhancements. They also provide intentional outreach to various student populations—including students on leave of absence and those who have not registered for classes—to increase Goucher’s overall retention rate. 

In the summer of 2021, Graves designed a program called “ReConnect” to help the large number of students on leave last spring feel supported in their transition back to campus in the fall. As a student success champion, Graves will focus on further developing the ReConnect program.

“I’m excited to be able to grow our support programs for students who have experienced setbacks in their education, and I’m thrilled that the HEDS organization has chosen to work with Goucher to improve and assess the ReConnect Program,” said Graves. “Every student deserves a second chance to return to school and make the most of it, and through ReConnect they’re able to focus on the foundational skills they may have missed when they first started and get additional support from the college and their peers to be successful.” 

The two-year Student Success Champions Program supports people who are leading, or will soon lead, student success projects, and it helps participants develop leadership and change management skills. Champions will attend four group meetings each year and will learn from an interdisciplinary community focused on student success.

“I am excited about the potential to expand and improve the ReConnect initiative that Alexandra’s participation in the Student Success Champions Program will bring about,” said Associate Vice President for Student Success Emily Perl. “They are an avid learner, eager to benefit from best practices, and committed to the success of each student at Goucher.” 

Vice President for Enrollment Management Jonathan Lindsay added, “I am so pleased that Alexandra has been recognized as a student success champion.”