Faculty PD Day - Keynote Presentation

"Improving Student Retention: What Matters Most"

Across the country, community colleges are rising to the challenge of improving successful outcomes for their students. From the work of those colleges and from national research, we are learning important lessons about the educational practices that matter most in strengthening student retention, learning and attainment. Those key lessons are the focus of this presentation.

By Kay McClenney, Ph.D.

Kay McClenney is Director of the Center for Community College Student Engagement and Sid W. Richardson Endowed Fellow in the Community College Leadership Program (CCLP) at The University of Texas at Austin. The Center conducts the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) and the Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE) and has now surveyed nearly a million community college students at over 700 colleges in 49 states. McClenney also directs the Center’s Initiative on Student Success, supported by the MetLife Foundation and Houston Endowment Inc.

Also within the CCLP, she is senior consultant to the UT/CCLP work on the national Achieving the Dream initiative;and co-director of CLASS ─ the California Leadership Alliance for Student Success. She previously served for 10 years as Vice President and chief operating officer of the Education Commission of the States.

Dr. McClenney has served as a consultant to education institutions, state higher education systems, state government, and professional associations in 47 states and internationally. In addition, she served for a number of years as a community college educator, during which she was a faculty member, program director, system administrator, and interim CEO.

A frequent keynote speaker, Dr. McClenney also has authored numerous publications on education issues, strategic planning, accountability, student success and leadership. She earned her Ph.D. in educational administration from the Community College Leadership Program at The University of Texas at Austin. Her previous degrees are a B.A. from Trinity University and an M.A. in Psychology from Texas Christian University.

Kay has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and the Executive Board of the American Association of Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC). She received the 2002 PBS O’Banion Prize for contributions to teaching and learning in America, the 2009 Mildred Bulpitt Woman of the Year Award from the American Association of Women in Community Colleges, and the 2009 International Leadership Award from NISOD.