Texas Southern University was prominently featured at the Education Advisory Board’s (EAB)

CONNECTED25 National Conference in Orlando, Florida, held October 13–15, where Dr. Naomi Lawrence-Lee and Dr. Raijanel Crockem, in collaboration with colleagues from Kean University, presented the session “Advancing Student Support with Career Services and Forage.” The session highlighted how both institutions are reshaping traditional student support models by integrating coordinated care with early career readiness to more effectively guide today’s learners from entry to career launch.

The Texas Southern University–Kean University collaboration demonstrated while each institution implemented its strategy through a different path, both arrived at the same destination a more proactive, career-connected and student-centered system of support. At TSU, this transformation is anchored by a continuous care model that begins during onboarding and extends throughout the student lifecycle, empowered by the university’s Coordinated Care network (T-CLAW). The Texas Southern collaboration of faculty with Care Units, such as Career Services and the First-Year Experience, continue to enhance the support provided to students at all classifications by leveraging technology to remain connected.

This approach removes barriers by making sure students do not have to navigate campus resources alone or guess which office can help them. Instead, support is embedded by design, activated through data and timed to moments when students need it most.

“As we continue this work, there are no siloed pockets of excellence,” stated Dr. Raijanel Crockem. “Help is intentionally woven into the student journey and touchpoints are synchronized rather than isolated. This evolution allows TSU to identify needs earlier, scale support more efficiently, and help students feel connected to resources not by chance, but by design.”

Dr. Lawrence-Lee emphasized how early career integration strengthens this model:

“From onboarding and academic guidance to Forage career virtual simulations and personalized outreach, T-CLAW makes sure students are seen, supported, and set up for success from day one. Our coordinated care network is evolving into a true student success ecosystem — one that begins with belonging and moves with students through graduation and into purposeful careers that support economic mobility.”

Session Summary

The CONNECTED25 presentation illustrated how Texas Southern University is expanding its Coordinated Care structure to include Forage-enabled virtual career exploration, creating a seamless connection between student success and workforce readiness.

Key takeaways from the session included:

• Career readiness is being introduced in the first year, not the final year.
• T-CLAW now unifies advising, outreach, early alerts, and engagement.
• Forage simulations give students hands-on exposure to professional pathways.
• Student success is reframed from self-navigation to institutional stewardship.
• Data-driven momentum supports proactive, equitable, and scalable student support.

Through this work, Texas Southern is being recognized nationally for advancing a next-generation student success model one that demonstrates how leveraging technology and synthesizing collaborative support can transfer operational performance and student success. 

More information about Forage virtual job simulations click Here

Information on the Future of Student Success by EAB click Here