Jesse Stommel, Senior Lecturer of Digital Studies
Senior Lecturer of Digital Studies Jesse Stommel was interviewed for a Chronicle of Higher Education article on a company called RaiseMe that is offering students “microscholarships,” small credits towards their bill in exchange for completing tasks such as meeting with academic advisors or getting involved on campus. The article said while some colleges and universities are embracing the program, some faculty members like Stommel are a little more skeptical.
“Stommel likes that RaiseMe gives students ‘very visible and clear goalposts’ for what they should do, he said. But he worries that solutions like microscholarships can obscure the bigger student-success problems for colleges: The financial-aid system is broken, Stommel said, and students need a lot more high-touch, human support. ‘It feels a little like ‘There’s an app for that,'” he said. ‘There’s an app for retaining students — and it’s more complicated than that.'” Read more.