Since 2000, my research has centered on the campus activities encouraging student involvement (both curricular and co-curricular) that increases student learning and student retention. The beginning of this focus occurred with the work examining how to enhance teaching effectiveness in Introductory Psychology I. By 2004, my focus of interest expanded from assessing the effectiveness of psychology courses to courses and programs that affected all first year students at Indiana University Southeast. I examine the types of measures that can be used to assess college attachment, study strategies and social skills of first year students. Overall, the data gathered helped to determine what factors can enhance student success and improve the quality of the undergraduate experience at Indiana University Southeast. This area of research has thrived in the past ten years at colleges across the country as researchers try to find the right combination of academic, faculty and social support to ensure their students make it to graduation. For the past five years, this area of research has given me many opportunities to share my research locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.
