Moon Shot for Equity: Northern Kentucky University, Greater Cincinnati Region

Advancing Diversity and Inclusion with Moon Shot for Equity

An Initiative to Close Equity Gaps in Higher Education by 2030

To fulfill the promise of student success we must eliminate persistent equity gaps at our colleges and universities. Our communities and our country will thrive only if all people have a fair and equal chance to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed. Today that means helping many more Americans complete college degrees and credentials of value.

The Moon Shot for Equity is a collaborative project led by education firm EAB that aims to close equity gaps within regional clusters of two- and four-year colleges and universities by 2030. NKU is a member of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region, committed to deploying 15 research-based best practices and policies proven to substantially boost equity and are at the same time mutually beneficial for their student populations’ needs. Many of the Moon Shot for Equity’s practices align with NKU’s Success by Design framework.

Your Role as a Faculty/Staff Member

For student success to improve, particularly improving equitable outcomes for all, the leadership of faculty and staff is essential. Whether it might fall within your role to reach out to students who have stopped out, to advise or mentor students more effectively, to help students learn and succeed at higher levels in your courses, or to improve their wellbeing and resilience, we need your help.

Please reach out to our campus leads for each team if you want to be involved or see a way you can make a positive impact.

Regional Best Practice Projects

Proactive Advising

Leveraging Technology for Proactive Advising is about creating an intentional, structured, and consistent strategy to reach out to students who need help rather than waiting for them to seek help. NKU is considering the current advising model/structure, the management of caseloads, and the resources/tools to work with our student population.

SECOND CHANCES FOR LEARNERS

Critical to creating access to a second chance is removing barriers to reenrollment and creating flexible learning environments to enable stopped out students, or stopouts, to complete their degrees. With proper outreach strategies, more than half of stopouts will return within one year. NKU will create a strategy for traditional undergraduate stopout students as well as tap into a promising adult learner market with “some college, no degree.”

STUDENT BELONGING

Student belonging encompasses a student’s sense of connection, engagement, and overall comfort with their institution. A strong sense of student belonging is associated with positive outcomes like retention, academic success, and overall wellbeing. NKU will seek to improve student belonging through a focus on active and engaged learning in the classroom, mental health and wellbeing, cocurricular and social engagement, and faculty mentoring and support.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Moon Shot for Equity?

The Moon Shot for Equity is a collaborative project led by the education firm EAB. The project aims to close equity gaps within regional clusters of two- and four-year colleges and universities by 2030. Schools that join the initiative commit to helping historically underserved students meet their graduation goals, pursue careers linked to their degree fields, and contribute to the economic, social, and cultural improvement of the region.

What do we mean by "equity gaps"?

We define equity gaps as disparities in educational outcomes across populations typically underserved in higher education - first-generation, low-income, rural, students of color, veterans, and other groups where the data show disparities in retention, persistence and graduation rates. These gaps often signal that current institutional practices are not effectively supporting all student groups.

What other institutions are involved?

The Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Moon Shot Region includes Northern Kentucky University, Gateway Community and Technical College, Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, and Miami University. NKU and our partners will work together to leverage our collective wisdom and efforts to change the opportunity landscape of the region, with added support and resources from our local and national partners.

Our region is the second consortium to join the Moon Shot initiative. EAB launched the national effort in October 2020 in cooperation with an inaugural consortium of colleges and universities in Southeastern Wisconsin. A third region has also been announced in Southeastern Pennsylvania; several other geographic regions are in preliminary discussions.

In January 2022, we had the opportunity to engage with representatives from Moon Shot's Southeastern Wisconsin region and learn from their experiences as the inaugural cohort.

View Moon Shot Panel

How does this initiative relate to Success by Design?

The two initiatives are complementary. Work currently underway through Success by Design will feed directly into our Moon Shot efforts, and Success by Design will benefit from the outside expertise and resources provided by EAB.

Moon Shot for Equity will enable us to work together with regional partners to develop coordinated efforts and utilize resources in ways that could not happen independently. Together, Moon Shot and Success by Design will help us achieve peer-leading student success outcomes, as we fulfill our role of regional stewardship.

What will success look like?

In the short term, success will be determined by the initial projects selected by the regional team.

Long term, we will measure our success by increasing the number of individuals pursuing academic degrees, improving retention and graduation rates, and ultimately, by growing the number of credentialed residents in our regional workforce across all demographics.

NKU is committed to this partnership for five years, but the reality is that this should be a perpetual and ongoing initiative to help improve our ability to aid underserved student populations.

What best practice projects has the region already engaged in?

After a period of assessment, three best practice projects were selected by the regional team: 1) Holds Reform, 2) Emergency and Retention Awards, and 3) Transfer Pathways.

Campus teams were formed in 2022 to examine these issues and make recommendations to remove barriers and improve the student experience.

Moon Shot for Equity Regional Meeting

The first Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Moon Shot for Equity regional meeting was held April 5, 2022. Attendees from NKU, Gateway CTC, Cincinnati State and Miami University gathered to hear from expert guest speakers, including a keynote address from Dr. Tim Renick, Executive Director of the National Institute for Student Success at Georgia State University.