The Albany Technical College Student Tracking and Retention Services (STARS) program has earned the League of Innovation Award for 2010. Headed up by Pamela Heglar, Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at Albany Tech, each of the STARS team members received individual awards at a recent employee luncheon held on campus.

The STARS Program supports students in building long-lasting skills they need in order to succeed and get the most out of their education. By working with a number of departments throughout the College, the team develops initiatives to support the program’s overarching goals by assisting first-quarter students. Although it is aimed at first-quarter students, its benefits are intended to spread far beyond those students it helps individually.

“Based on research conducted nationally and our own experience, we know that the first term of enrollment is challenging for most college students,” said Pamela Heglar, Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at Albany Tech. “This is particularly true of students who are the first in the families to attend college and those who have been away from education for a while. The STARS program is designed to help students make a smooth transition into college by answering all of their questions and attempting to resolve as many of their concerns as possible. Our results indicate that the program has been successful in helping the college retain students.”

The STARS Team regularly uses class time to reinforce strategies for studying and reducing stress. By approaching student success from different angles, the team is able to meet a grater number of individual student needs, such as talking to students about their study habits, work schedule, motivation, career goals, and much more.

Established 28 years ago, the League’s Innovation of the Year Award was devised as a way to recognize significant innovations reflecting capstone achievements and the continuing renewal of the spirit of innovation and experimentation upon which the League was founded. The award is designed to recognize faculty, staff, and administrators at member colleges who have designed and implemented a significant innovation. Granting this award provides a venue for showcasing these innovations and the dedicated community college educators who are working to create new programs, improve processes, and enhance the opportunities available in their communities.

For more information about the League of Innovation in the Community College, www.league.org. For more information about Albany Tech’s STARS Program, please visit www.albanytech.edu and click on the Student Services/STARS link.