Mobile devices and applications are expected to have a significant impact on teaching and learning in the near future. Yet colleges and universities are currently facing severe budget constraints and discretionary funding is restricted for new initiatives. The question addressed in this paper is: “What strategy should an institution of higher learning with limited resources use in adapting the capabilities of mobile devices to benefit its academic programs?” To help answer this question, students were surveyed to identify their perceptions on the importance of a selected set of mobile learning functions, their experience with using those functions, their recommendation for a mobile learning adoption strategy, and information on the particular mobile devices they possess. The recommended strategy was “pick and choose special capabilities to develop” with the selected functions being (1) Receive alerts and reminders about assignments and appointments concerning the course being taken; (2) Communicate individually with faculty, an advisor, or other students using voice, email, or text messaging; (3) Post or reply to items in a poll, discussion board, or other application; and (4) Download and review lesson materials from a course being taken. Other recommendations included techniques for faculty and student support services as well as institutional policies for limiting models of mobile devices for use in courses, making online courseware for laptops and desktops the same as mobile learning courseware, and making the opportunity for mobile learning optional.

As more colleges add online courses and fully online programs, the need to   offer   online   supports   to   students becomes more apparent.    The connection  to  an  adviser  is  critical  for  all  students,  but  for  online   students   it   can   serve   as   their   primary   connection   to   the   institution.      In   Fall   2011   a   pilot   study   was   conducted   at   the   Community   College   of   Vermont   (CCV)   to   examine   online   advising   through   a   Moodle   course   site.      Although   this pilot   study   represented   a   small   online   advising   cohort,   56   of   the   total   155   online students, it illustrates implications for practice and research.    The advising cohort showed a slightly   higher   retention   rate   than   the   overall   online   population.  Based   on   survey   results, students   reported   a   strong   desire   for an   adviser   who   stays   with   them   throughout   their   educational   career   at   the   college.  In Fall   2012,   CCV institutionalized   online   advising   and   began   a   systematic   approach   to   assisting   online   students.      Five   advisers   added   online   students   to   their   work   assignments   and   all   CCV    advisers   were   informed of what services CCV would be offering online.   When  students  applied to  CCV and  selected   online  (ONL)  as  a  home  location,  they  were  contacted via  email  with  an  explanation  of the  online  services   available   to  them   so   that   students   could   make   a   more   informed  decision   about   their   home   location. In   Fall   2012,   286   students   selected ONL   as   their   home   location   and   were   contacted   by staff; 256   students   chose to remain online.

Student  retention  in  higher  education  has  become  a  critical  focus  in  recent  years.  This  paper  describes   the   efforts   of   Lone   Star   College-­Online   and   its   Online   Student   Support   Services   unit   to   build   and   implement   a   comprehensive   suite   of   services   for   online   students   with   the   intention   of   enhancing   the   online  student  experience  and  ultimately,  directly  and  indirectly,  improving student  retention  rates.  It   is   hoped   that   others   can   learn   and   gain   from   the   shared   successes   and   challenges   presented   in   this  paper.  

While   institutions   recognize   the   need   to   provide   online   student   support   services,   the   most   effective   approaches   for   developing  and   delivering   these   services   are   not   always   clear.   The   need   to   support   students  inside  and  outside  the  online  classroom  calls for  collaborative  efforts  from  many  constituencies.     The   articles   in   this   volume   illustrate   good   practices   in   providing   student-­centered   service   innovations   designed  to  improve  academic  success  and  retention.