Leveraging Pathify as a Student Success Tool
Student engagement, support and retention drive institutional success — yet, the real challenge lies in ensuring investments in these areas truly make an impact. With Pathify, Leah Deranian, Instructional Technology Specialist at St. Petersburg College, and Tara Bias, TRIO Student Development Specialist at Lassen Community College, leveraged the power of unifying communication, systems, resources, and people — impacting student success and engagement across their respective campuses.
Finding the Right Solutions
At St. Petersburg College, Deranian managed a high academic advising caseload and identified a gap in effective student communication. “Our old portal felt very closed off — requiring multiple clicks to navigate and making it difficult to backtrack. The platform felt cramped and we constantly debated where to fit things because there wasn’t enough space on the page.”
Across the country at Lassen College, students voiced the need for an app to centralize communication. ”Our legacy system was ineffective,” Bias reflected. Both Bias and Deranian found their answer in Pathify, which offered the tools to build campus communities and improve communication.
Building Community
With Pathify Communities, Deranian formed digital spaces for students to communicate and connect. “We use more than just advising groups,” she explained. “We created groups for student support services, transfer students, first-generation students. Some groups are voluntary, others are required — they offer a variety of ways for students to connect and receive targeted support.”
Bias took a similar approach — seeing Pathify as a solution students could engage with and trust. “Pathify stood out as the clear leader for student communication and the ability to facilitate communication in a familiar, social format,” Bias observed.
One-Stop-Shop
Once Pathify got up and running, both institutions explored even more communication possibilities with Pathify.
At Lassen, students use digital communities to connect before even stepping on campus, helping international students adjust, introducing new students to campus life and ensuring all students stay informed. Pathify’s extensive capabilities also reduced email overload with portal notifications, pages and templated messaging. “When we communicate effectively, students feel like they’re part of the family,” noted Bias. “Using Pathify as a one-stop-shop made a significant difference for students who feel overwhelmed by multiple technologies like calendars, events, reminders, Canvas, you name it. Having everything centralized in the portal simplifies things,” Bias added.
Impact on Student Success
As Deranian and Bias continued using Pathify, they observed its widespread impact. “Seeing students learning from each other adds tremendous value,” noted Deranian. At both Lassen and St. Petersburg College, the results proved valuable: “Pathify leads to increased engagement and student success,” Deranian remarked. “We saw a 31% increase in future-term enrollment. And it happened in just one year – Pathify works quickly! Plus, I reduced my email volume by 27%.”
“When everyone else’s [enrollment and retention] numbers decreased, ours increased. Having [Pathify] helped — we had over a 20% jump in our retention,” Bias said.
Key Takeaways
Champions like Deranian and Bias saw firsthand the transformative impact of Pathify on student success. With accessible integrations, a user-friendly interface and consistent support, Pathify fosters a sense of community and promotes long-lasting, positive student outcomes. Bias reflected, “In the almost decade I’ve worked at Lassen, Pathify remains the only initiative we’ve implemented and maintained with lasting success.”
For Deranian, “Pathify elevates everything else on campus.”
Want to learn more how Pathify drives student success and outcomes? Watch the recording for a closer look.
