Community College Applies Business Intelligence to Finance and Student Retention

Broward Community College in Ft. Lauderdale, FL said it is using business intelligence software from SAS to better manage finances and increase enrollment. With eight campuses, BCC must collect, analyze, and report on financial and student data to justify state funding and compete with other educational institutions.

BCC used to struggle with a time-consuming financial reporting that was prone to inaccuracies. "It used to take us four to six weeks to pull our financial data together into a spreadsheet and another three to four weeks to put the financial report together," said Patti Barney, BCC vice president of Information Technology. "Now, using SAS, we can produce multiple reports in a single day with all of the required information right on our desktop."

With SAS Financial Management, staff monitor financial reports, analyze operational effectiveness, and generate ad hoc reports, reporting data at the college level, by campus and by individual department and cost center.

The college also uses SAS software to understand why some students succeed more than others for its Achieving the Dream program, which comprises 136 students. Drawing intelligence from a variety of systems, such as student information, financial aid, course management, faculty reports, human resources, and budgeting, BCC tracks their success. The insights gleaned helps the college know when to intervene to help students stay on track, earn degrees, and ultimately transition to four-year institutions or the work force.

At BCC, the Achieving the Dream students boast a 92 percent retention rate, said Matthew Seeman, BCC information analyst. "Four out of the seven learning communities had 100 percent retention," he added. "Out of 136 students, only seven withdrew."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • illustration of a futuristic building labeled "AI & Innovation," featuring circuit board patterns and an AI brain motif, surrounded by geometric trees and a simplified sky

    Cal Poly Pomona Launches AI and Innovation Center

    In an effort to advance AI innovation, foster community engagement, and prepare students for careers in STEM fields and business, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona has teamed up with AI, cloud, and advisory services provider Avanade to launch a new Avanade AI & Innovation Center.

  •  black graduation cap with a glowing blue AI brain circuit symbol on top

    Report: AI Is a Must for Modern Learners

    A new report from VitalSource identifies a growing demand among learners for AI tools, declaring that "AI isn't just a nice-to-have; it's a must."

  • glowing shield hovers above a digital cloud platform with abstract data streams and cloud icons in the background

    Google to Acquire Cloud Security Firm Wiz

    Google has announced it will acquire cloud security startup Wiz. If completed, the acquisition — an all-cash deal valued at $32 billion — would mark the largest in Google's history.

  • digital dashboard featuring a shield icon, graphs, a world map, and network nodes

    IBM Introduces Agentic AI Governance and Security Platform

    IBM has launched a new software stack for enterprise IT teams tasked with managing the complex governance and security challenges posed by autonomous AI systems.