By Mary Jester
Asst. Campus Editor

In February, the governor of Pennsylvania proposed a $6 million program to encourage Pennsylvania colleges to graduate more students within four years, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.

However, Marlesa Roney, registrar and senior project officer of the Lilly Endowment Retention Initiatives, said the national average for the amount of time in which college students graduate is within six years.

Roney and Drew Koch, retention specialist for the Lilly Endowment Retention Initiatives, both said graduating in four years is realistic for some students, but not for all.

For example, students who choose to co-op add one year to their college career. Study Abroad programs may also increase how long a student is in college. Some students cannot attend classes full time because they have families to care for and full-time jobs.

"We're really interested in students' success," said Roney. "The desire is to see them complete the degree."

Koch said, "College isn't a race. We want it to be a good quality experience."

Lilly Endowment Retention Initiatives focuses more on increasing how many students complete their baccalaureate degree than on encouraging students to finish within four years.

In 1997, a $5 million grant was given to Purdue to improve retention. The goal of the initiatives is to improve student commitment and integration by creating academic and social experiences.

Ten programs were created including Summer Start, supplemental instruction and learning communities. "If one program doesn't help a student, we're hoping another program will," said Roney.

During the Summer Start program, incoming freshmen come to Purdue in the summer to attend classes together and live in the same residence hall. Supplemental instruction provides help sessions for classes in which 25 percent or more of students have received D's, F's or W's.

Sessions are led by students who have done well or tested out of the classes. Classes that have supplemental instruction include the following: MA 153, Algebra and Trigonometry I; MA154, Algebra and Trigonometry II; BIOL 203, Human Anatomy and Physiology; BIOL 204, Human Anatomy and Physiology; PSY 120, Elementary Psychology; MCMP 304, Biological Chemistry I; MCMP 305, Biological Chemistry II; and PHYS 152, Mechanics. Students in learning communities are enrolled in the same sections of certain classes.

The programs are experimental and Roney and Koch said each one has been successful. However, if they wish to continue the programs in 2002, they will have to find another source of funding.

Roney said the success of each program has to be compared to its cost to see if it is worth continuing. As of now, the programs are growing. Six learning communities are being added. Incoming students are enrolling now for the Summer Start program.