Pillar #2 Forever Washburn | Scholarships and Student Opportunities
By LISA LOEWEN
Washburn has always sought to make a college education accessible to anyone who wants and is willing to put in the effort to obtain it. Even as they work to steadily increase enrollment, the intention to keep access open for all remains.
The Forever Washburn campaign seeks to raise $80 million to increase scholarship and student opportunities. Once those additional need-based and merit scholarships have been funded, the goal is to then increase the amount of privately funded scholarships given to Washburn students by more than 50%, exponentially expanding student access to financial assistance.
Dr. Alan Bearman, vice president of strategic enrollment management and dean of student success and libraries, said that Washburn is ranked #5 in the country for low student debt. With the help of the Forever Washburn campaign, it aspires to be ranked #1.
“Forever Washburn means more scholarships available. More scholarships mean less debt. Less debt means students can work fewer hours. Fewer work hours mean more hours for them to focus on experiential learning, which is pivotal in their decision-making process,” Bearman said.
First-year student Hailey Warren says the scholarships available to her as a Shawnee County resident played a pivotal role in her decision to attend Washburn.
“Originally, I was planning to attend Emporia State,” Warren said. “But when my teachers at Topeka West explained the Shawnee County Thrive Scholarship and other scholarships available to me, it didn’t make sense to go anywhere else.”
While the scholarship opportunities enticed Warren to stay in Topeka for her college education, she says the smaller class sizes with more personalized attention from professors reinforced that she made the right choice.
“I think college freshmen sometimes struggle with how to talk to professors or where to go for help,” Warren said. “I have never felt that way at Washburn.”
“When my teachers at Topeka West explained the Shawnee County Thrive Scholarship and other scholarships available to me, it didn’t make sense to go anywhere else.”
Hailey Warren | Student | Washburn University
In the last two years, Washburn has seen significant growth in enrollment overall, but the largest increase has been from students who hadn’t originally planned to go to college because of financial constraints. Scholarships made it possible for them to afford to go.
“Young people are hesitant to take on debt right now and are focused on careers where they can make more money,” Bearman said. “If you offer them a pathway that is almost debt free, they are more likely to choose careers where they feel they can make a difference, like teachers or nurses.”
Dr. Eric Grospitch, vice president of student life at Washburn, said that by offering additional needs-based and merit scholarships, Washburn is creating support for students who want to stay and learn in Shawnee County. More than 50% of Washburn students are first-generation college students.
“When we looked at the numbers, at who the majority of our students are, we found that the number of locally grown kids is pretty significant, so it just makes sense to incentivize them to stay here for their education,” Grospitch said.
However, attracting quality students is just the beginning. The real test for any university is how well they retain those students through graduation.
Bearman said the key to student retention is information. Washburn has committed significant resources to its First Year Experience program to help establish standards for information literacy.
“We want to serve students from their first steps on campus until they walk across the commencement stage,” Bearman said.
From the moment a student enrolls at Washburn, they begin their information literacy journey. All freshmen live in dorms and are part of dedicated learning communities designed to bring students with similar experiences and goals together.
“We want to serve students from their first steps on campus until they walk across the commencement stage.”
Dr. Alan Bearman | Vice President of Strategic Enrollment Management | Dean of Student Success and Libraries | Washburn University
During their first semester, students enroll in WU 101, a class that not only provides students with tools on how to be successful in the classroom but also gives them avenues to network with advisors, library personnel, peer advisors and others.
“Every section of WU 101 is designed to help students find their person, so they have an advocate they maintain throughout their tenure at Washburn,” Bearman said. “Different sections of the class are dedicated to specific student needs — honors students, first-generation students, health sciences majors. Each one focuses on how you find the information you need and then how you use it once you find it.”
To make access to information even easier for students, Washburn recently relocated several services into the Plass Building, which formerly housed the law school. Now the library, study abroad, tutoring, writing labs, study rooms and center for student success and retention are all under one roof.
“Having all of those services in one location just makes sense for students,” Bearman said. “And it doesn’t hurt that it has a giant parking lot.”
The investment in helping new students acclimate to college has paid off. Washburn has seen its graduation rate increase by 20%.
In addition to making a college education accessible and affordable, another reason for Washburn’s improved retention is the many opportunities for students to get involved on campus and engage with the community. Funding from the Forever Washburn campaign will be used to create a more vibrant student environment on campus.
Student life involves everything outside of the classroom. Whether it’s housing, student health services, counseling, involvement opportunities or extracurricular activities, students thrive when their needs are being met.
“Think about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs,” Grospitch said. “We all need shelter, food and safety to survive. That is what the scholarships provide. Once students no longer have to worry about those basic needs being met, they are in a position to start being educated. That is when they really start to thrive.”
“We found that the number of locally grown kids is pretty significant, so it just makes sense to incentivize them to stay here for their education.”
Dr. Eric Grospitch | Vice President of Student Life | Washburn University
First-generation college student Tyler Haywood is one of those thriving students who has found his home at Washburn. As a forensics investigation major, Haywood admits that having the KBI building on campus was the primary reason he considered attending Washburn. However, it was the welcoming atmosphere he felt the first time he stepped foot on campus that solidified his decision.
“I love the small campus and the smaller class sizes,” Haywood said. “Every time I walk across campus, I run into someone I know.”
Haywood said he appreciates Washburn’s small class sizes where professors know students by name and seem genuinely interested in his success. He also attributed much of his success to his first-year experience at Washburn.
“I lived in a dorm that had a learning community dedicated to first-generation students,” Haywood said. “There were about 25 of us that lived together in the same hall. From the moment we moved in, we were part a community that shared similar experiences, complete with a faculty member who had also been a first gen student. We knew we were not alone and we had resources to help us figure things out.”
“The scholarships I have received mean I don’t have to stress about juggling courses and work.”
Tyler Haywood | Student | Washburn University
Along with several scholarships, Haywood was given the opportunity to work on campus and become involved with several organizations. He became a resident assistant his sophomore year, taking over the responsibility of leading the learning community for new first-generation students. As a junior, he is now the lead resident advisor (RA) of his dorm, a student assistant in the Center for Student Life, a peer educator in a section of WU 101 and is in the process of applying for an internship with the KBI.
“The scholarships I have received mean I don’t have to stress about juggling courses and work,” Haywood said. “It also frees me up to be involved with a lot of different things on campus.”
Haywood said he is excited to see everything that’s happening across campus and he hopes to still be around when the master plan is complete.
“Ideally, my dream would be to stay right here in Topeka and work in the KBI lab on campus,” Haywood said.
Click here to move on to Pillar #3 Forever Washburn | Programs and Teaching Excellence
