CREATE-ing retention: translating retention theory into a faculty handbook for co-curricular conference integration at Vancouver Island University
Subject
Abstract
Canadian post-secondary institutions face mounting financial pressure as federal immigration reforms reduce international student enrolment, threatening billions in projected revenue. This applied project responds to that challenge by focusing on student retention at Vancouver Island University. Using Tinto's (2017, 2025) contemporary retention framework, this project distills three pillars of retention: sense of belonging, self-efficacy, and perception of curriculum. It positions Vancouver Island University’s annual Celebrating Research Engagement and Talent Exposition (CREATE) conference as a high-impact-practice-supporting activity capable of strengthening all three when intentionally integrated into course design. Semi-structured conversation groups with six faculty members who embedded CREATE into their Spring 2025 courses yielded practical insights for effective integration, including: building on existing assignments, incentivizing participation through grading, and leveraging institutional supports. These faculty perspectives, combined with retention theory and high-impact practice literature, informed the development of a faculty-facing instructor handbook published as an open-access resource through Pressbooks. The handbook is grounded in the argument that CREATE's impact on retention begins not at the event itself, but in the courses that lead students to it, offering instructors a quick-start integration guide, accessible background on retention theory and high-impact practices, an overview of available supports, and direct faculty advice to meaningfully connect CREATE to their course design.