| Idaho is facing an educational crisis, consistently ranking 50th in the nation for high school students directly enrolling in college. A startling college attrition rate results in only oneout of every tenIdaho high school graduates earninga college degree. College students have been shown to possess a unique set of stressors, which can negatively affect their academic success and lead to attritionin college. Anxiety and depression aregrowingconcerns in the young adult population, with oneout of every fourcollege students suffering from some form of mental illness. This study uniquely combinedsurvey-based data with clinical blood work to better identify correlations between biological markers, retention theory, and psychological survey instrumentsto determine the contribution of health inretention and academic success. Bloodwork and survey data were collected from Idaho-resident freshmen (n=50) at the beginning and (n=45) end of their first semester at Idaho State University(ISU). Quantitativeanalysis confirmed that multiple biological makers changedsignificantly over the course of the study,providing compelling clinical evidence that the health of freshmen at ISU wasadversely affected over the course of their first semester. Several of these biological markers significantly correlated with retention choices and GPA.Negative health behaviors,such as poor sleep, alcohol consumption, and diet,also correlated with decreased academic success and changes in clinical biomarkers.This dissertation provides evidence that thedeclininghealth of freshmen studentscontributedto attrition anddecreased academic success. Concerted effortsare needed toimprovesupport and intervention for students’physical and mental health in future retention strategies.
xviKeywords: Retention, persistence,attrition,biomarkers, quantitative, theory of attrition, freshmen, higher education, clinical, depression, student health, Astin,Attinasi, Bean, Cabrera, Pascarella, Terenzini, Tinto |