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Free Checklists and Guides for Student Success Leaders

Short, downloadable resources with practical strategies you can use right away.

A college student wearing headphones around his neck takes handwritten notes beside his laptop and an open book in a campus study space while another student works in the background.Is Your Campus Building Student AI Literacy? A Checklist

What is AI literacy in higher education? Dr. Jean Mandernach, Executive Director of the Center for Innovation in Research on Teaching at Grand Canyon University, describes it as discernment that goes beyond tool skills: knowing when to use AI, when to verify its answers, and what to keep private. She cited a survey finding 85% of students use generative AI for coursework. This checklist gives faculty, tutors, librarians, advisors and IT teams 11 practices to gauge how well students use AI. Watch the free webinar.

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A teenage student in a beige shirt watches a laptop screen while a woman in an orange sweater points at it and explains, with bookshelves and a plant behind them.Is Your Dual Enrollment Orientation Ready to Scale? A Checklist

How do you orient dual enrollment students consistently across many partner high schools? Meg Foster, online learning specialist at Innovative Educators and career coach at Reynolds Community College, pointed to Winthrop University, which works with 67 sites across South Carolina and requires dual enrollment students to complete an online orientation before the semester, with shared terms, knowledge checks, and a practice email reviewed by staff. This checklist covers requirements, common language, skill practice, and campus buy-in.

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A smiling young woman in a denim jacket and striped shirt reads a message on her smartphone, held in both hands.Beyond the Warning Letter: A Checklist 

What should an academic probation letter say to students? Dr. Amy Baldwin of the University of Central Arkansas recommends letters that frame probation as temporary and common, use "we" language, and name one clear next step. She cited Shannon Brady's research, in which students who received a warmer message were more likely to follow through. This checklist covers probation messaging, finding root causes, matching support, and tracking recovery.

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Large group of students in a hallwayDual Enrollment: Growing with Quality

How can colleges build a successful dual enrollment program that improves student outcomes? John Fink of the Community College Research Center says growing with quality requires investment in outreach, academic support, career pathways, and advising. Laramie County Community College embeds advisors in partner high schools, and Coastline College brings counseling leaders into new partnerships early. This guide covers common sticking points and questions for your team.

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A student in a green sweatshirt and earbuds writes notes in a spiral notebook beside an open laptop, a highlighted textbook, and a set of highlighters.Is AI Helping Your Students Learn? A Checklist

How can students use AI to study without letting it do the thinking? Dr. Jean Mandernach of Grand Canyon University recommends letting AI handle planning and sorting, like turning syllabi into a spaced study calendar, while students take their own notes, ask AI to flag gaps the same day, and quiz themselves with confidence checks and hints in place of full answers. This checklist covers setting clear AI expectations, getting organized, building stronger notes, and practicing retrieval.

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A professional writes a handwritten list in a spiral notebook at a wooden table, with printed charts on one side and an open laptop on the other.

The New TRIO Director's First 90 Days: A Checklist

What does a new TRIO director need to know in the first 90 days? Most inherit a grant, a budget, a staff, and a calendar of federal deadlines all at once, so start with the grant award notification, the funded proposal's objectives, and the regulation that governs your program. This checklist walks through what to know in the first 30 days, the systems to build by day 90, and how to protect your budget and build the network that keeps your program moving.

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A diverse group of college students sitting together on a sunny campus lawn in front of a historic university building, talking and relaxing.Lessons From Orientation 2026: What Worked and What's Next

How can colleges improve new student orientation before the spring class arrives? Orientation professionals told Innovative Educators that their biggest 2026 wins came from an easy-to-navigate online resource hub, a mapped communication plan, and including families as part of the audience, and Austin Community College reported saving roughly 240 staff hours per week by automating information delivery. This guide shares those wins, where teams got stuck, and five things to build toward for next year.

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A diverse group of students with backpacks walking up the steps into a college building, viewed from behind.What Dual Enrollment Students Need Before Day One

What do dual enrollment students need to know before starting college courses? Practitioners find that many arrive without knowing how to read a syllabus, email a professor, ask for help before a crisis, understand college-level academic integrity, or find where to go when something goes wrong. This resource explains why one-and-done orientation falls short and how to sequence dual enrollment onboarding around the moments students need information most.

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A diverse group of colleagues in an engaged informal discussion, seated together in a relaxed campus lounge setting.Growing Leaders From Within: A Checklist for Student Success Programs

How can student success programs grow leaders from within? Start by looking for leadership potential in all staff, not just those with formal titles, then give emerging leaders mentors, development beyond their current role, and projects to lead before they step into leadership. This checklist also helps programs document institutional knowledge, cross-train staff, and plan leadership transitions so strong programs stay strong when key people move on.

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Four college students smiling and talking outdoors on campus, two of them holding notebooks and folders.Connecting First-Year Students to the Support They Need Most

How can colleges personalize orientation and support for first-year students? Start by identifying your highest-need populations, such as first-generation, transfer, Pell-eligible students, and student parents. Then design two or three pathways and use intake or enrollment data to route students automatically, so they don’t have to self-identify. This resource shows what goes in each pathway, from a welcome that speaks to each student’s situation to a clear next step at every stage.

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A smiling young woman and her father unloading belongings from a car together during college move-in day.Helping Families Foster Student Independence: A Checklist for Campus Leaders

How can colleges engage families while still building student independence? Give families consistent, sequenced communication across departments, a clear framework for supporting students without replacing them, and an understanding of why FERPA protects them rather than shutting them out. This checklist helps campus leaders review their family engagement from orientation through the first year and find where on-demand digital tools can reduce calls and build trust.

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A smiling young male student taking notes in a notebook while working on a laptop at a table at home.Building a TRIO Student Success Ecosystem: A Checklist for Program Leaders

How can TRIO programs support more students with limited staff? Give new students a program-specific orientation before their first advisor meeting, offer on-demand workshops that advisors can assign based on need, and send proactive outreach at key moments like the first four to six weeks, mid-semester, and re-enrollment. This checklist helps program leaders find gaps in their student success ecosystem and make high-touch support scalable.

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A woman writing with a pen on paper.The Hidden Cost of Check-the-Box Compliance Training

How can colleges make the business case for better compliance training? Compare the cost of the training you want with what ineffective training has already cost, from investigations and legal fees to staff time, insurance premiums, and enrollment impact. One university faced a $4.5 million Clery Act fine in part because campus security authorities were not properly trained or tracked for five years. This resource walks through the real costs of check-the-box training and three principles that make compliance education change behavior.

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A diverse crowd of students walking along a busy campus pedestrian path with a modern college building in the background.Where Colleges Are Losing Dual Enrollment Students and How to Stop It

How can colleges convert dual enrollment students into degree-seeking students after high school? The PERSIST framework names seven factors that help students push through setbacks instead of leaving: purpose, expectations, relationships, support, identity, self-efficacy, and transition. This resource shows where dual enrollment students disengage and what institutions can do at every stage to keep them on the path to matriculation.

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A diverse group of students and an instructor collaborating over documents and materials at a table in a campus lab setting5 Year-End Investments Every TRIO Director Should Consider

What should TRIO directors spend year-end funds on? Five high-impact areas are academic support such as tutor training, persistence and retention through orientation and peer mentoring, workforce and career readiness, financial literacy workshops students can return to, and staff development. This guide explains how each investment improves student outcomes now and builds a stronger program for next year.

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A teacher and student sharing a warm, engaged conversation at a library table surrounded by bookshelves.Teaching Students How To Learn

How can colleges teach students how to learn? Metacognition, or thinking about your own thinking, helps students plan, monitor, and evaluate their learning instead of relying on passive strategies like rereading and highlighting. This resource shares practical strategies for advisors, tutors, and faculty, such as having students predict their exam score before seeing results so overconfidence becomes visible.

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Four diverse college students walking and laughing together on a campus park path, carrying backpacks and notebooks.How Orientation Can Better Prepare Students for Day One

How do you design new student orientation that students actually remember? Use the twenty-four hour rule: give students only what they need to act on within the next day, connect every topic to a specific person or office they can go to next, and loop key information back with nudges throughout the semester. This resource outlines practical strategies and action steps for cutting information overload and making orientation part of a first-year retention strategy.

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Three professionals in an engaged working conversation around a table with a laptop in a modern office settingPerkins Planning Toolkit: From Grant Requirements to Student Success Outcomes

How can CTE administrators make the Perkins Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA) more than a compliance document? Send each stakeholder group a survey tailored to their vantage point at least a week before any meeting, replace rating scales with questions that ask for specific examples, and use meeting time to discuss responses rather than collect them. This checklist helps CTE administrators audit their CLNA process and turn grant requirements into goals that drive student success outcomes.

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College advisor in conversation with a student at a desk in a campus officeTRIO Spend-Down Strategies: An Online Services Investment Checklist

Can TRIO programs spend down grant funds on online services? Online services are one of the most flexible and documentable options, as long as each purchase is allowable under your TRIO regulations and Uniform Guidance, supports student outcomes, and can be backed by participation data and student evaluations. This checklist covers online investments across academic support, orientation, financial literacy, career readiness, and staff development, including the usage data you’ll need for your APR.

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A diverse group of college students working on laptops in a bright, full classroom settingIntegrating Compliance Training Into Orientation: Strengthen Student Readiness & Reduce Risk

How can colleges deliver compliance training that students actually complete and remember? Embed short modules of ten to twenty-five minutes into the orientation path, ground them in student voices and real scenarios, and give students a suggested timeline with progress updates. Rhode Island School of Design builds compliance content into its student onboarding path, with clear milestones and automatic progress emails that keep students on track. This resource outlines practical strategies and action steps for moving from completion to comprehension.

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A group of students in a library smiling and giving a thumbs-up.Is Your Campus Ready to Support First-Year Students? A Checklist for Student Success Leaders

How can colleges help first-year students make the transition from high school? Give feedback early and often, explain clearly how college expectations differ from high school, introduce academic resources before students need them, and coordinate support across departments so it continues through the first and sophomore years. This checklist helps faculty, staff, and student success leaders review their approach and find where a more coordinated, campus-wide strategy could make the biggest difference.

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Three professionals leaning over a table covered in charts, documents, and sticky notes, collaborating on a planning session5 Ways to Strengthen High School & College Dual Enrollment Partnerships

How can colleges and high schools build stronger dual enrollment partnerships? Five strategies help: create a cross-institutional success team, host annual partnership planning meetings, set up job shadowing and campus visits, establish shared communication protocols, and celebrate and learn together. This resource explains how each one helps high schools and colleges work as one team, so students get a more seamless path to college success.

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A smiling young female student holding a notebook and coffee cup on busy campus steps with other students in the backgroundSample Dual Enrollment Student Experience Survey

What should you ask dual enrollment students in an experience survey? This ready-to-use, 10-question template covers how prepared students felt to begin, which topics they wish had been explained before classes started, their biggest challenges, which college resources they used and why they skipped others, and whether they plan to continue. Administrators can adapt it to see where students feel prepared and where the program can improve.

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A group of high school students working independently at a table using tablets, laptops, and notebooks in a classroom settingWhy Students Don't Know How To Study: A Checklist for Tutoring Centers

How can tutors help college students learn how to study? Train tutors to organize tutee notes at the start of each session, model active reading strategies like annotation, help students build study guides instead of rereading, and introduce focus techniques like the Pomodoro method. This checklist helps tutoring center staff and administrators find gaps in tutor training across study skills, belonging and self-advocacy, and attention and focus.

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A smiling advisor shaking hands with a student across a desk stacked with textbooks in a campus office covered with notes and chartsTRIO Spend-Down Strategies: Smart Year-End Investments That Drive Student Success

How can TRIO programs spend down year-end funds compliantly? Before every purchase, ask whether it’s allowable under your TRIO regulations and Uniform Guidance, whether it supports persistence, academic achievement, or graduation, and whether you can document it with attendance, agendas, invoices, and student evaluations. This resource also lists high-impact investment ideas, from peer mentoring and financial literacy workshops to mental health first aid training for staff.

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A college advisor and student in a warm, engaged conversation on a bench in a bright campus lobby, with a laptop and backpack nearby5 Things Your Title IX Training Must Do in 2026

What should Title IX training for college students include in 2026? Effective training covers current Title IX requirements and applicable state law, defines key terms in plain language, includes authentic student perspectives and real scenarios, reflects your campus policies and community, and comes with documentation and reporting tools that hold up to external review. This resource outlines how to move beyond completion rates to training students actually remember.

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A diverse group of college students laughing and walking together outside a modern campus buildingWhat Orientation Leaders Are Getting Right in 2026

Does online orientation improve student retention? Institutions that treat orientation as a persistent resource hub are reporting strong results. Davidson Davie Community College reached a 92% orientation completion rate, and St. Paul College saw persistence rise from roughly 40% to 70% after pairing online orientation with student success workshops. This resource shares lessons from a national summit on orientation and student success, covering engagement, personalization, data, and steps institutions can take now.

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A diverse team of five professionals engaged in an animated discussion around a table with a laptop in a bright modern officeIs Your Online Orientation Ready? A Checklist for Student Success Leaders

What should a strong online orientation include? Break content into short segments with student voices and interactive elements, route students to pathways for their population and let them skip what doesn’t apply, tie completion to a clear next step like a hold release or advising access, and track completion rates, drop-off points, and satisfaction. This checklist helps orientation and student success leaders quickly find gaps in content, personalization, communication, and data, and know where to focus next.

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Three students sitting on grass with books and a laptop

Beyond the LMS: Reimagining Online Orientation

Should colleges build online orientation in their LMS or use a dedicated platform? Institutions tell Innovative Educators that LMS-based orientation is hard to keep updated, feels like coursework, offers limited interactivity, and is sometimes inaccessible to students before they need it. This resource covers what a dedicated platform adds, including single sign-on, built-in accessibility, a multilingual toggle, real-time completion data, and integrations that remove registration holds, plus how to make the case for the switch.

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A teacher and young student looking at a tablet together at a classroom desk, with notebooks and supplies nearby

Designing Dual Enrollment Backwards

How can colleges turn dual enrollment into an enrollment pipeline? Design the program backwards from undergraduate enrollment and completion goals, build structured pathways aligned to high-demand majors, and track yield and retention instead of just headcount and credit hours. At the University of Cincinnati, former dual enrollment students show retention 6% higher overall and nearly 30% higher for underrepresented students than peers who didn’t participate. This resource outlines the pipeline approach and what it takes to replicate it.

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A staff member holding a notepad in an engaged conversation with two students in a bright campus lounge setting

Practical Coaching Strategies for Early College Students

How can advisors coach early college and dual enrollment students without adding to staff workload? Shift advising conversations from giving information to building ownership, set clear expectations and next steps without overwhelming students, and use a shared coaching framework across support staff so confusion gets addressed before it turns into disengagement. This resource outlines practical coaching strategies and action steps that work within existing staff capacity.

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Three diverse college students laughing and connecting on a campus staircase, carrying backpacks and course materials

From Orientation to Belonging

How can colleges make orientation more welcoming for diverse student populations? Use a coordinated, system-wide framework with campus-level flexibility, build academic resources and support services directly into orientation, and use culturally responsive activities to increase in-person attendance. Address academic pathways, cultural adjustment, and support early, including for dual enrollment and international students. This resource also covers action steps for auditing your orientation and involving families in onboarding.

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A student speaking animatedly with an advisor at a table in a bright campus office, with an open notebook between them.

First-Generation Student Belonging Checklist

How can orientation help first-generation students feel they belong? Include student narratives that reflect your actual first-gen population, address imposter syndrome directly, make TRIO and student success resources easy to find, connect students with advisors, coaches, and peer mentors, and use feedback from first-gen students to shape the design. This checklist covers identity and storytelling, digital and hybrid design, wraparound support, and belonging in practice.

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A college student taking notes in a classroom while an instructor presents at the front of the room

Dual Enrollment Orientation Readiness Checklist

What should a dual enrollment orientation include? Beyond documented mandates and clear completion criteria, cover academic expectations, academic integrity, and student support resources. Make it mobile-friendly, offer multiple formats, build in knowledge checks, involve faculty, advisors, and families, and collect student feedback so the orientation is reviewed and updated regularly. This checklist helps you audit an existing dual enrollment orientation or guide a new build.

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Two young women studying together at a desk with papers, laptops, and notebooks in a dorm room setting

Helping Families Navigate Dual Enrollment Opportunities

How can colleges communicate with families about dual enrollment? Map how families currently get information, fix inconsistent messaging across schools and channels, and use digital content to scale outreach without adding staff workload. Sequence information so families get what they need at the right time, with realistic expectations. This resource outlines promising practices and action steps for guiding families from first question to enrollment.

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An advisor and a student talking across a desk with an open laptop in a bright office.Rethinking Academic Probation

How can colleges improve academic probation outcomes? Daniela Salazar De Luna, senior student retention coordinator at Waubonsee Community College, said the college replaced in-person probation workshops with a required online module of about 40 minutes that removes the registration hold automatically when students finish. Advisors and retention staff use students' reflection answers for weekly outreach, and she reported fewer students moving on to later probation stages. This resource covers the three-tiered model, common barriers, and questions for institutional leaders.

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A college student celebrating in a lecture hall after reading a paper, with other students visible in the background.

Preparing Dual Enrollment Faculty

How should colleges prepare dual enrollment faculty? Dual enrollment instructors need structured onboarding that goes beyond a standard faculty orientation, covering adolescent learners and their developmental needs, the dual enrollment environment, aligning instructional expectations across high school and college, and supporting student readiness and academic integrity. This resource outlines customizable onboarding for new and continuing faculty, including micro-credential options and action steps.

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A student typing on a laptop at a desk with papers and a smartphone nearby.The New ADA Accessibility Regulations

How should colleges prepare for the ADA Title II digital accessibility deadlines? Department of Justice deadlines under the ADA Title II regulations require colleges and universities to make websites, documents, and shared digital materials accessible. Building sustainable practices means defining clear roles across departments, using accessibility checkers in everyday content creation, offering professional development for faculty and staff, and adding accessibility to publishing and review processes. This resource covers key focus areas and four readiness questions for institutional leaders.

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A group of college students in a library raising their fists and cheering around a table with a laptop and open books.

Improving Retention for Transfer Students

How can colleges improve retention for transfer students? Laurie Hazard, former assistant dean for student success at Bryant University, found that transfer students there landed on probation at higher rates than the general population. Her team built transfer-only transition course sections, a transfer community of practice, dedicated transfer advisors, living-learning communities, and an online summer course, and she reported higher satisfaction in sections grouped by student identity. This resource covers four areas of effective transfer support and reflection steps for your program.

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A keyboard with three blue keys displaying accessibility icons representing mobility, hearing, and vision disabilities

Creating Accessible Course Content

How can faculty make course content accessible? Before posting materials online, use proper heading structure, descriptive link text, and alt text for images, check color contrast, and run accessibility checkers. Common barriers include poorly structured LMS pages, low-contrast slides, untagged or scanned PDFs, and videos without captions. This resource covers common barriers, core priorities, quick checks, and action steps that support Department of Justice expectations for ADA digital accessibility.

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Two students studying together at a library table, one reading a textbook aloud while the other takes notes beside an open laptop.

Metacognition Meets Dual Enrollment

How can colleges teach dual enrollment students how to learn? Embed metacognitive practices where students already are: model how to approach readings and exams in instruction, ask how students prepared in advising, introduce learning strategies at orientation before students struggle, and provide tools they can revisit as coursework intensifies. Thinking about their thinking helps students monitor understanding, adjust ineffective study strategies, and persist through challenges. This resource includes reflection and action steps for your program.

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Screenshot of an online family portal reading Welcome Parents & Families, with a video of a graduate hugging her family and buttons for orientation and ongoing support modules for parents and families.

Parents as Allies

How can colleges engage families at scale? Maura Hollister, Assistant Director of First Year Experience for the College of Engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, built a six-module online family course timed to the first six weeks of the semester, covering FERPA, academics, community, self-care, and what comes next. She reported that 375 parents completed every module and that worried parent emails dropped from 20 to 50 a year to one this semester. This resource outlines five elements of a scalable family engagement model.

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A red brick college building surrounded by trees and lawns, with a curving walkway on an overcast day.

Dual Enrollment in 2026

What trends are shaping dual enrollment in 2026? Dual enrollment is expanding rapidly across states, with stronger emphasis on workforce and transfer pathways, more alignment between K-12 and community colleges, a focus on equitable access, and closer ties to enrollment and completion strategies. Programs scaling with intention ground partnerships in shared accountability, embed student supports from the outset, and align funding with long-term outcomes. This resource includes questions for institutional leaders.

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