The College Experience

President Troy D. Paino offers perspective on why it’s important to make time for conversation with individual students, and six actions for fostering connections more deeply.

By Troy D. Paino

At Washington University in St. Louis, the Taylor Family Center for Student Success will unite formerly separate resource programs and provide students with peer mentors, financial support and education, and other guidance.

Students engage with their religious or spiritual lives on campuses, where faith connections offer opportunities for community building and personal wellness.

April Belback, director of student success at the University of Pittsburgh, shares about her work launching the institution’s Student Success Hub and the importance of belonging in the student experience.

The Women’s Network connects thousands of students across 120 campus chapters in North America, encouraging professional development for nonmale students in a collaborative environment.

The University of Dayton joined forces with Sinclair Community College to create a more accessible route to degree completion, offering 100 degree paths. The effort has a 96 percent graduation rate.

Fordham University’s Housing Fund promotes positive student outcomes, removing obstacles to engagement on campus and creating a more vibrant and diverse residential community.

Howard Community College is the latest institution to add a family study room. Proponents of these spaces say they help students who are parents and signal something deeper about belonging—when they’re part of a suite of family-friendly policies.