ABSTRACT
Colleges and universities seemed reluctant to consider the potential of a student approach to student retention that acknowledged the importance of engaged learning and integrative pedagogies for connecting students’ values with their course of study. Addressing student dissatisfaction may nudge retention rates a bit higher, but this approach targets second-rate causes of student attrition. Campuses that begin their retention efforts with student satisfaction surveys often focus on areas of dissatisfaction—aspects of the college experience rarely tied to student motivation. During the late 1990s, a confluence of three key things occurred while IWU strategized to address retention woes: an interest in whole person development, an emphasis on finding one's life purpose, and a board of trustees passionate about a rearticulated university mission.
