By KYLE ROBERTS

Staff Writer

A national report cited the university as a student-retention success story for graduation percentages.

According to an analysis by the Education Trust, at http://www.edtrust.org, Tech has improved its graduation rate from 35 percent in 1997 to 55 percent in 2002, well above the 46 percent median rate among its peers.

Dr. Jo Ann Dauzat, dean of the College of Education and a professor of curriculum, instruction and leadership, said she believes this is related to the personal touch that the university tries to impress upon incoming students.

"I believe that Tech has been successful in building connections between the faculty and the student from day one of the student's tenure," Dauzat said. "Students and parents are impressed during recruitment by how personable faculty members are. The students get to meet the faculty and deans of the different colleges, and that doesn't happen in a lot of other universities."

Dauzat also said having knowledgeable advisers in particular fields helps students achieve what they come to school for at a greater success rate than other institutions.

"We try to connect students with professors in a personable manner," Dauzat said. "That gives a sense of accountability for students to attend class and do harder work. Having programs such as Blackboard, which can be considered in a sense as having a teacher available 24 hours a day, is also helpful to students' academic achievements."

Pamela Ford, dean of enrollment management, said that is the university's way of treating students is a key factor for student-retention.

"Students want to be treated like human beings," Ford said. "That's the 'duh' in this whole thing. And Tech is known for caring about students. It's always been known for that."

According to the Web site, for the past six years Tech graduation rates were studied along with schools such as the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla., Maryville College in Maryville, Tenn., Troy State in Troy, Ala., and Weber State in Ogden, Utah. The study suggests retention increases in a short amount of time are not impossible.

Dauzat said she believes all these elements combined have made Tech the esteemed program it is for student-retention, and she is pleased with the national recognition.

"These are all both long-term and short-term ways to up retention," Dauzat said. "Louisiana Tech has a knack for dealing with individuals rather than dealing with statistics. Our focus is on who students are and who they want to become."