Redefining Student Success

Redefining Student Success

Ohio Wesleyan President Tapped to Speak at United Nations General Assembly

DELAWARE, Ohio - New initiatives at Ohio Wesleyan University helped attract record numbers of minority and first-generation students this fall, while more students are succeeding and progressing toward graduation. Now, OWU President Matt vandenBerg has been invited to discuss the university's innovations at a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) forum in New York.

vandenBerg, Ed.D., will participate on a panel Sept. 24 discussing "Accessibility and the Redefinition of Student Success in Postsecondary Education."

The presentation is part of UNGA 2024, Inclusion for All: From Learning to Leading. Top experts at the forum will explore how inclusive practices in K-12, higher education, and the workplace can unlock the full potential of every individual, leading to more innovative, resilient, and successful organizations and economies.

One-third of Ohio Wesleyan's new first-year class are students of color. And 38% are first-generation students.

Earlier this year, Ohio Wesleyan secured innovative partnerships with Columbus State Community College to make a bachelor's degree more accessible, allowing many of the community college's graduates to attend OWU for the same tuition price as Columbus State. A new partnership with Claflin University, a Historically Black University in South Carolina, has launched with plans for student exchanges.

In addition, investments in people and academic support programs for first-generation and other students have led to substantial increases in first-to-second-year retention at the university, now about 85%.

"We have set out to become a premier destination in the U.S. for first-generation college students," said vandenBerg. "Ohio Wesleyan is a place where students will find access to higher education, find their path, find success, find belonging, and transform themselves."

The panel at the forum also will include Ana Homayoun, founder and CEO of Green Ivy Educational Consulting LLC, and Tom Looney, chair of the State Board of North Carolina Community Colleges. The moderator will be Gus Schmedlen, chief revenue officer at Texthelp.

Other scheduled speakers at the forum include David Banks, chancellor of New York City Public Schools; Mary Davis, CEO of Special Olympics; Glenna Wright-Gallo, U.S. assistant secretary of education; and Rebecca Winthrop, director of the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution.

UNGA 2024 will take place from 9:30 a.m. to noon Sept. 24 at L'Avenue at Saks, 8 E. 50th St. in New York.

Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation's premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature experience, the OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to understand issues from multiple academic perspectives, volunteer in service to others, build a diverse and global perspective, and translate classroom knowledge into real-world experience through internships, research, and other hands-on learning. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review "Best Colleges" lists. Connect with OWU expert interview sources at owu.edu/experts or learn more at owu.edu.

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