St. Lawrence College

Centralized Engagement Platform Creates Sense of Belonging Among All Students.

Facing challenges with disparate systems, outdated functionality, lack of integration and problems in automation and scalability, St. Lawrence College (SLC) upgraded to Ready Education’s CampusGroups Engagement Platform in 2022.

SLC had outgrown its legacy platform, implemented four years prior. They needed an application that centralized their student engagement resources and created a sense of belonging among all students.

Background: St. Lawrence College

St. Lawrence College was founded in 1967 as a technical college of applied arts and technology. Located in Eastern Ontario, Canada, it is a public college with over 8,000 full-time students.

The college offers more than 100-full time programs on its Kingston, Brockville, and Cornwall campuses, as well as online. St. Lawrence College also attracts a large international student population, constituting approximately 30% of it’s student body.

Challenges

St. Lawrence College (SLC) upgraded to Ready Education’s CampusGroups Engagement Platform in 2022. The College had outgrown its legacy platform, implemented four years prior. The main challenges with St. Lawrence’s legacy platform were:

Decentralized Communication System

Students were getting their information from 17 different applications because the legacy platform’s communication and coordination tools were de-centralized and lacked key features. Dissemination of information was fragmented, inconsistent and inefficient.

Outdated Functionality and Difficult to Navigate

The app’s user interface was complex and unintuitive, with a steep learning curve for users. The web version was also outdated with limited functionality and slow system response time. Platform adoption rates and app downloads among students and staff were low.

Lack of Integrations, Automation and Scalability

The platform was unable to scale up as engagement activities at the college grew and diversified. Performance during peak times was poor. Lack of automation and integration with other campus systems created inefficiencies. Basic inputs for events needed to be entered manually.

The Ready Education Solution

St. Lawrence’s new Ready Education powered platform, dubbed “UR SLC” by the institution, offers a streamlined, feature-rich, and user-friendly digital environment for student engagement. It provides a centralized place for all students to access key resources, engage and communicate––and it’s changed the game for engagement among students and staff. Key benefits of St. Lawrence's new platform include:

1 . Unified Campus Platform for All Students

Domestic and international students can now connect to the tri-campus community from one single location. The digital, one-stop-shop serves as the go-to resource for all St. Lawrence students, connecting students to each other and to key college resources anytime, anywhere.

2 . Engaging Interface with Functionality Students Actually Use

Students love the consistent, user-friendly experience the new platform provides, as well as the easy accessibility via web or mobile. Students love using the email, chat, and discussion feeds to communicate. Customization and user permission levels help admins direct students to the information and resources they need the most.

3 . Robust Integrations, Tracking and Reporting Capabilities

Since the new platform integrates with campus systems, including Single Sign-On and Student Information Software, students use it daily. A powerful data analytics and reporting dashboard enables administrators to identify and intervene amongst disengaged students. The student leaderboard and reward system also incentivizes student involvement.

One System Instead
of 17 Different Apps

One System Instead of 17 Different Apps Manage All Aspects of Campus Life The platform has helped us consolidate resources. Instead of 17 different apps, students have one place to connect with each other, find out what’s happening on campus, and get involved.

Jeremy Mastin - Student Engagement & Experience Coordinator

St. Lawrence College

Manage All
Aspects of Campus Life

We use the platform to manage everything outside of the classroom. It integrates with core campus systems, including our Student Information System. Students access their Digital Student ID through the app, using it to check-in and out of events.

Jeremy Mastin - Student Engagement & Experience Coordinator

St. Lawrence College

Rewards Program
Incentivizes Student Engagement

To make the platform even more fun and exciting, we introduced gamification with a points and badge system. The 5-tier rewards program automatically rewards students for actions outside the classroom, including joining a group, completing a survey, attending an event.

Jeremy Mastin - Student Engagement & Experience Coordinator

St. Lawrence College

International Student
Onboarding Made Easy

Our mandatory international student checklist guides incoming students through what they need to do for a successful arrival to Canada and on campus. This automated process has streamlined onboarding for students and staff so much that we launched a checklist for domestic students in the fall and will launch one for returning students next year.

Jeremy Mastin - Student Engagement & Experience Coordinator

St. Lawrence College