UAB has expanded its Early Alert System to enable faculty to notify and provide support for students who are not performing at a satisfactory level in a course this semester. The electronic notification provides students sufficient time to seek and receive support or assistance if needed.

In the inaugural year for the Early Alert System, the faculty participation rate was 46 percent. “We would like to increase participation because the evidence suggests that students are more successful when warned early in the semester of a likely D, F or W grade,” said Philip Way, associate provost for undergraduate programs.   

“The percentage receiving those grades in courses using the EAS last year declined compared with the same courses in the previous year when the EAS was not available,” Way said. Also, in spring 2008, 32 percent of students who received alerts made C or better in courses in which they received alerts.”

The Early Alert System (EAS) is on the Faculty Resources tab on BlazerNET at blazernet.uab.edu. Faculty will be guided through the process with step-by-step instructions.

This year the Early Alert window has been adjusted to six weeks; it began the day after add/drop deadline, Aug. 27, and ends about a week before the withdrawal deadline, Oct. 8.

Several enhancements have been made to the Early Alert System this fall. Faculty will find:

• A new check box for instructors who have no alerts to report. This demonstrates faculty awareness of and participation in the EAS.
• An option to send additional personalized e-mail to students.
• A feature for faculty to record student visits.
• An option for instructors of 300- and 400- level courses to be included.
• A new link available soon in the EAS channel to access aggregate and school-level reports; this is a work in progress.