At Georgian Court University in Lakewood, a new $1.9 million federal grant is helping students stay on track to timely graduation while improving overall retention rates.

The U.S. Department of Education's Title III grant, payable over five years, is for GCU's Chart the Course program, which is designed to expand academic support services and bolster college completion.

"We established Chart the Course to help students needing non-credit skills development courses get back on track to graduating, and we know from experience that it makes a difference in their success," said Joseph R. Marbach, Ph.D., president of Georgian Court University. "Additional grant funding will allow us to have even greater impact."

'GCU's commitment to its students is
commendable and with this federal funding
and partnership, more students will benefit
from the program and graduate on time,'
                                  - U.S. Rep. Chris Smith

The program offers free, three-credit courses to qualified students and professional math and writing tutoring services. In addition, students receive intense faculty advising and additional peer mentoring.

"GCU's commitment to its students is commendable and with this federal funding and partnership, more students will benefit from the program and graduate on time," said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.). "As federal student loan borrowing has skyrocketed, programs such as Chart the Course support graduating on time, and play a role in addressing this critical problem."

The new funding comes on the heels of GCU's 2015 TRIO-Student Support Services award, a five-year, $1.4 million grant to help students succeed. With Chart the Course, the university will be able to provide more services to ensure students earn a degree. The university also drew recent accolades from Washington Monthly, which named GCU No. 42 on its "Best Bang for the Buck" ranking of 386 Northeast colleges and universities.

"We are proud of our success, but this new grant will help us become a national exemplar, so that an greater number of students who attend college will complete college," said William J. Behre, Ph.D., GCU Provost.

"College affordability is huge," said Behre, who noted GCU was the only institution in the state to freeze tuition costs this year. "Helping students graduate helps them avoid the expense of being in college any longer than necessary. Starting college, but not finishing, takes the greatest financial toll."

This article ran in the October 2016 edition of the Trenton Times education section "Learning Curve," on page 37 and can be read online by clicking here.