Connecting the Dots
A mission-driven focus drives award-winning institutional transformation at Texas Woman’s University
The American Council on Education presented the 2023 ACE/Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformation to Texas Woman’s University during the organization’s annual meeting on April 14 in Washington, D.C. Chancellor Carine M. Feyten accepted the award in front of about 800 higher education leaders.
The award was established in 2014 to recognize institutions that have responded to higher education challenges in innovative and creative ways, and which have achieved dramatic changes in a relatively brief period.
“When I look back and connect the dots, I would say our transformation spun out of a singular focus on our mission,” said Texas Woman’s Chancellor Carine M. Feyten. “I have had the pleasure to witness incredible tangible and intangible growth, but most compellingly, I hear from our students, more than half first-gen, about how their Texas Woman’s experience is giving them the confidence and tools to leverage their lived experiences and natural intelligence in ways that will positively impact the world.”
In recognizing Texas Woman’s with the award, ACE noted the university in 2018 implemented an ambitious strategic plan, which included $460 million in new, cutting-edge facilities that elevated the university’s living and learning ecosystem; new graduate programs in STEM-related fields; and new modalities of delivering education, one a seven-week term that speeds time to degree.
Enrollment Growth
Throughout the strategic planning period, enrollment grew, bucking predictions and building a student community that better reflects the state’s racial and ethnic demographics. Last fall’s incoming class of first-time college students was 43% Hispanic, 22% Black, 22% White, and 9% Asian — a dramatic shift when compared with the total student body, which is 33% Hispanic, 19% Black, 35% White, and 10% Asian.
Among the institutional challenges the university overcame was a stark gap in persistence among students, with those from ethnic groups trailing Whites. Over a 10-year span, one-year persistence for White students was about 8% higher than for Hispanic students and 12% higher than for Black students.
The gap mirrored what was happening at many other universities beginning with the 2010 cohort. But over successive years the gap between White and Hispanic groups shrank at Texas Woman’s. By the 2017 cohort, there was no statistically significant difference between entering cohorts for White, Hispanic or Black students, leaving analysts to wonder what factors were influencing the changes. The gaps continued to wane for the 2018 and 2019 cohorts.
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and Black students’ one-year persistence plummeted for the 2020 cohort. It dropped 10 points below White and Hispanic students. Initially, analysts attributed to the drop to the pandemic, but institutional research staffers discovered the link between those students living on campus and those not living in residence halls.
It turned out living on campus was a primary predictor of success, especially for TWU’s Black students. Then, analysts discovered that 90% of the university’s Black students were living on campus compared with 73% of White students and 81% of Hispanic students. When the pandemic hit, the overwhelming majority of students living in campus housing went home, a precursor to the dip in persistence. When larger groups of students returned, including Black and Hispanic students, persistence rates again rose. “It turned out the significant campus housing and dining – and other on-campus support tools – are essential parts of our success,” Feyten said.
Most importantly, for three years in a row, the university has closed one- and two-year persistence gaps between different racial and ethnic groups.
Reducing Teacher Shortage
In another example of achieving success after overcoming a challenge, the university found a solution to the vexing teacher shortage affecting school districts from coast to coast. About 50% of teachers leave the classroom within five years of starting their careers, which has exasperated a critical workforce shortage.
At Texas Woman’s, 80% of its graduates are still teaching 10 years after graduation. Recognizing this, the university’s College of Professional Education looked for ways to enhance the teaching experience and offer support to relatively new educators. Texas Woman’s teachers at the K-12 level are invited to return to campus every summer to share their experiences, engage in a mentorship program, and to share best practices for classroom success.
Achievement Highlights
While these examples of overcoming challenges are compelling, it was also important the university be able to demonstrate its value and show that students are realizing a meaningful return on their education investment. Here are a few pointed statistics that demonstrate Texas Woman’s is worthy of the ACE/Fidelity Investment’s award for institutional transformation:
- TWU produce 40% of the doctoral degrees in the Allied Health Fields in Texas
- The university produces 17% of the doctoral degrees in nursing, helping produce the faculty who will build up the nurses in Texas and beyond
- Texas Woman’s makes it easy to transfer into the university and succeed, allowing students to save on the cost of their education. Fifty-one percent of TWU graduates are transfer students from other higher education institutions.
- Texas Woman’s is the fourth-most affordable four-year institution in Texas.
- Additionally, the university launched a health and wellbeing initiative that expanded competitive sports programs, added childcare solutions and established a council charged with driving inclusion and excellence.
Furthermore, Texas Woman’s created a leadership institute focused on supporting women entrepreneurs, women in politics and public policy and student leadership.
In 2021, the Texas Legislature established the Texas Woman’s University System. With its 16,000 students, 3,000 employees, and campuses in Denton, Dallas and Houston, the university system is the first in the nation with a woman-focused mission.
“Today, we no longer hide behind the ambiguity of the moniker TWU. Instead, we proudly call ourselves Texas Woman’s and claim our identity as the nation’s first woman-focused university system,” Feyten stated. “We believe that when you educate a woman, you empower the world. It is the faculty and staff’s collective believing in something that has truly made all the difference.”
ACE invited nominations and applications for the award from any U.S. college or university eligible for ACE membership. The award, which comes with a $10,000 prize, is presented annually to an institution with a student population of 12,001 and over. The organization also presents an annual award to institutions with populations up to 12,000 students.
Texas Woman’s became the first four-year institution in Texas to receive the honor. Other institutions who have received the award include University of California–San Diego, Arizona State University and Georgia State University.
This custom content is sponsored by Texas Woman's University and developed by Inside Higher Ed's sponsored content team. The editorial staff of Inside Higher Ed had no role in its creation.
Built with Shorthand