How Cal Poly Pomona Transformed Student Success
Deep in the heart of Southern California, Cal Poly Pomona (CPP) stands dedicated to its mission of empowering students through a practical, experiential education. Faced with the challenge of providing personalized support to over 26,000 students, CPP embraced a pioneering approach, integrating AI technology to enhance connectivity and support without sacrificing the human touch that makes educational experiences meaningful.
Zoe Lance, a CPP alum and now a pivotal Communication Specialist in the Office of Student Success at CPP, experienced firsthand the hurdles both administrators and students faced daily. Resolving these challenges became her driving force, especially with her unique understanding of student life complexities. Integrating AI into her workflow promised a new horizon, and she wanted to ensure it reinforced personal connections with students.
Collaborating with an AI Colleague
Zoe’s new partnership with her AI coworker, named Billy Chat, wasn’t just beneficial—it was transformative. In partnership with CPP’s Associate Vice President of Student Success, Cecilia Santiago-González, she worked to develop a framework for how they would use Billy to redefine student support. As Zoe integrated Billy into her daily responsibilities, the duo began to redefine student success and support. Billy brought automation and scalability, while Zoe provided the necessary human empathy and strategic oversight, ensuring each student interaction was as meaningful as it was efficient.
Dr. Santiago-González, deeply involved in the strategic deployment of Billy, played a pivotal role in aligning his abilities with CPP’s student success goals. Her insights into student needs and institutional priorities helped shape their operational strategy, ensuring it supported not just the surface level tasks but also addressed deeper student success factors.
“Through strategic planning and a deep understanding of our student demographics, we tailored Billy to act not just as a tool, but as a team member capable of addressing the nuanced needs of our diverse student body,” commented Dr. Santiago-González. This strategic vision was critical in transforming Billy from a simple chatbot to an integral component of CPP’s student success strategy.
Zoe meticulously tailored Billy’s functionalities to not only preemptively address common student issues but to also ensure these interventions were aligned with individual needs—a testament to a process both empathetic and driven by action. This partnership exemplified a genuine synthesis of technology and human insight.
Humans Improve AI; AI Improves Humans
The collaboration between Zoe and Billy at Cal Poly Pomona is a fusion of human insight and artificial intelligence, transforming student support services across various functions.
Billy, the chatbot, is not only instrumental in managing student holds but served multiple roles that streamlined and enhanced CPP’s student interaction capabilities. Beyond the function of hold resolution, Billy is equally adept in assisting with registration issues, financial aid inquiries, and providing reminders for impending deadlines. This multipurpose utility made Billy an indispensable asset to the institution’s student success strategy.
As it pertains to automating hold resolution, Zoe got help from her Information Technology colleagues to integrate Billy with CPP’s Student Information System. This way, as soon as holds were placed on student accounts, the information flowed over to Billy. Zoe set up “dynamic audiences” and “recurring campaigns” that automatically sent relevant messages from Billy to students to help them resolve holds. What made the audiences “dynamic” is that whenever a student took care of a hold, Billy’s data was updated so he knew they didn’t need further support with the hold.
The configuration was so effective that one semester, Billy helped 300 students resolve holds in the first 24 hours after a deployment, showcasing his impressive ability to handle large volumes of inquiries efficiently. This immediate impact was a direct result of Zoe’s foresight and meticulous planning in integrating AI solutions tailored to meet specific student needs.
Over time, Billy’s ability to resolve holds became more pronounced. The chatbot managed to reduce the number of students with active holds from over 8,000 to less than 2,500 within a few weeks, significantly easing the administrative burden and enhancing student satisfaction. This was achieved through a sophisticated setup where holds were automatically categorized and addressed based on their type and urgency, using pre-set responses developed under Zoe’s guidance.
Zoe also established a critical feedback loop in Billy’s programming. Specific interactions, particularly those involving sensitive issues such as potential student withdrawal, were escalated to her. This ensured that while Billy could easily answer simple questions, Zoe could dedicate her focus to complex cases requiring a personal touch.
For example, when students hinted at potential withdrawal due to personal or academic dilemmas, these interactions were promptly directed to Zoe and her colleagues. Their consultative support often helped students re-evaluate their decisions favorably, showcasing the profound impact of personalized intervention.
Real, anonymized student conversations
Jeremy, CPP student
Crystal, CPP student
And many of these interactions are prompted by Billy’s proactive outreach, planned and coordinated by Zoe. That is, students don’t always know who to turn to when they need help, and often times, Billy is an outlet for their voices and needs.
Moreover, Billy’s proactive outreach efforts, such as reminding students about nearing deadlines and following up on pending tasks, helped prevent the formation of new holds. These preemptive actions, designed by Zoe, reinforced the effectiveness of AI and bolstered student trust and engagement.
Driving Deeper Connections with AI
Through her collaboration with Billy, Zoe accomplished remarkable operational outcomes, notably a significant reduction in student holds and faster resolution of pressing issues. This newfound operational efficiency grants Zoe more time for direct, impactful student interactions, where she could foster relationships that went beyond administrative aid.
And it shows.
Students engage with Billy at a rate greater than 90%, significantly higher than similar chatbots at other institutions, which speaks volumes of the trust and reliability Zoe has built. It isn’t uncommon for students to expressly request Zoe through their chats with Billy, a clear indicator of the deep personal connections Zoe nurtured.
Zoe spends about 3 to 4 hours each day directing Billy’s campaigns and assisting students that Billy escalates to her. This dual role makes her pivotal in both enhancing Billy’s effectiveness and addressing complex student issues directly. Besides working with Billy, Zoe collaborates with other departments, analyzes feedback for continuous improvement and engages in strategic planning to support student success effectively.
Zoe’s story at CPP is a powerful narrative of how thoughtful, human-centered design in AI applications can transcend traditional operational roles and foster a learning environment driven by empathy and innovation. Her journey illustrates the profound potential of AI in education when applied with human wisdom and compassion.
“Billy has become such an essential part of our student success communication efforts,” reflects Zoe. “By blending AI with genuine human interaction, we’re not just solving problems—we’re helping students across the finish line to graduation. Making technology serve us in the most human way possible has been the key.”
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