Our overarching goal is to help students achieve their full potential. Toward that end, we are involved in a wide range of research projects whose underlying aim is to improve distance learning and student outcomes. Our partners in this effort include the Lumina Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment, The Higher Learning Commission and John Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education.

In 2014, a record 10,000 students earned graduate and undergraduate degrees from AMU and APU. We are taking steps to further improve success, particularly among new students in high-enrollment gateway courses. In 2014, we completed a successful pilot of the new ClearPath Learning Relationship Management (LRM) System, a social media tool that fosters engagement and collaboration. The results: ClearPath users, on average, completed the enrollment and transfer credit process at a higher rate, had lower withdrawals and drops, exhibited a higher GPA in their initial courses, and registered for subsequent classes earlier than those in the larger student population. In 2015, we expect to open ClearPath to all undergraduate APUS students as part of our ongoing effort to support their success.