As mentioned in last week’s OnCampus, Drake will launch a new student success platform, called Starfish, in August 2018. Starfish is a communication tool that helps promote engagement to improve student outcomes. Drake will leverage two components that support student retention. Starfish Early Alert helps gather information about students so that they can access assistance before circumstances cause them to fall behind. Starfish Connect helps create a bridge between students, professors, advisors, and staff to keep students on the right track. There are scheduling and communication elements built into this portion of the software. The planning team has just started their work on the project, so look for more updates in the coming months.

— Melissa Sturm-Smith, Associate Provost for Academic Excellence and Student Success