Portland State receives $3M grant to address systemic barriers, improve student outcomes

Portland State University has received a 5-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Strengthening Institutions Program to the tune of $2,995,791 to improve outcomes and address barriers that trip up undergraduate students. More specifically, Project Student AI for Learning (SAIL) aims to improve retention, workforce readiness and course completion by integrating new coursework designed to help students succeed.

"PSU students are balancing a lot as they work toward their degrees - jobs, family responsibilities, commuting and the academic demands of college," said Andrea Garrity, executive director for Student Success. "We want to make it easier for students to get the support they need to succeed in their courses, without having to figure out where to go or find extra time in an already busy schedule."

By combining human support and AI-driven technology, Shoshana Zeisman-Pereyo, executive director of Student Academic Support Services, said Project SAIL will eliminate the "navigation penalty" for PSU students.

"Our goal is to ensure that every student - particularly our first-generation, Pell-eligible and commuter undergraduates - receives immediate, personalized academic support," Zeisman-Pereyo said. "Additionally, for our students to achieve social mobility, they will develop critical, employer-aligned AI literacy skills for their future careers."

Through Project SAIL, Student Academic Support Services will build on existing embedded tutoring support, with a particular focus on courses with higher drop, fail and withdrawal rates. Students in early STEM and business courses with higher attrition rates will benefit from peer tutors embedded in each class to provide proactive support.

Students will also see a success chatbot at the course level that will route them to the best place for help.

On the curriculum side, coursework will benefit from modernization to give students a competitive edge and practical, career-ready AI skills. Career readiness courses will include short, AI learning units that focus on ethical and real-world AI applications like prompt engineering, identifying algorithmic bias, protecting data privacy and analyzing data patterns.

"Our goal is to make academic support and AI literacy a more integrated part of the PSU student experience, so students can build confidence, stay on track toward graduation and develop skills they'll carry into their careers and lives beyond college," Garrity said.