Abstract:
In the Fall 1994 semester, a series of discussions occurred within the Counseling
Department at the Orchard Ridge Campus of Oakland Community College which focused
on academically at-risk students enrolled at the Campus for their first term. These were
students who appeared to be academically unmotivated, had developmental educational
needs, or exhibited other characteristics which threatened their academic success. The
Counseling Department concluded that if these students could be identified prior to
enrollment, at the beginning of, or during their first term, intervention strategies might be
designed to assist them to be more successful academically. With this purpose in mind,
the counseling department's Research Committee analyzed the Fall 1995 academic
performance of all new students enrolled at the Orchard Ridge campus. The objective was
to determine the specific characteristics that could differentiate students earning above 2.0
and below 2.0 first-term grade point averages.
