Case Study: Delta State University boosts student retention and engagement with Ellucian CRM Advise

Ellucian CRM Advise helps Delta State University give personalized attention to each student

Delta State University, a 2,778‑student institution serving one of the nation’s most underserved regions, faced low college readiness (only 11% college‑ready from K–12) and a first‑year persistence rate of about 57%. Funding constraints led the university to work with Ellucian’s Grants Services team to win the Department of Education’s First in the World Grant and to purchase Ellucian CRM Advise as part of a four‑year, campus‑wide student success initiative.

Ellucian CRM Advise was implemented to create measurable student success scores and deliver real‑time data to advisors, enabling early alerts and timely, personalized interventions based on grades, attendance, high‑school GPA, ACT scores, LMS activity and more. The solution also supports positive outreach to high‑achieving students and lets the retention task force and Student Success Center coordinate responses; Ellucian’s tools thus gave Delta State the analytics and communications needed to identify at‑risk students earlier, track progress with concrete metrics, and support efforts to raise first‑year persistence.

Delta State University

Edwin Craft

Chief Information Officer