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About the Author
Danielle Meirow
Director of Student Leadership and Involvement
When we see students building a cardboard boat during Homecoming or hosting an event by the Husky Statue, we see more than just fun and games. We see a critical part of their education. In Student Leadership and Involvement (SLI), we witness students’ active engagement in the Michigan Tech community every day. And while we know from experience that these moments are essential to their development and retention, it’s affirming to see a growing body of national research confirm the link between campus activities and student success.
Essential for Success, Not “Extra”
At Michigan Tech, our students are known for their innovation, collaboration, and curiosity. These traits are developed not only through their academic programs but also through the experiences that make up campus life—leadership roles, building snow statues, student organizations, playing Broomball, volunteering, and countless other opportunities that connect Huskies to each other, to the institution, and to the larger community.
National research makes it clear that these experiences are not “extras.” They are essential to student development, sense of belonging, and ultimately, their retention and persistence to graduation.
Building a Community Where Everyone Belongs
At their best, campus activities are “beyond-the-classroom experiences that intentionally connect, engage, and develop a college community where everyone belongs.” That simple idea sits at the core of our work. You can see it when a team of friends takes the stage at the Homecoming Lip Sync Battle or when you watch a new student organization president run their first meeting. These moments shape their purpose, confidence, and relationships on campus.
National research backs this up: students involved in campus activities report significantly higher levels of belonging than their peers. That feeling of belonging, in turn, fuels stronger academic performance and persistence. Belonging isn’t accidental—it’s built through intentional experiences. Faculty and staff play a vital role in this process. When you encourage students to get involved, attend events, or take on leadership roles, you are contributing directly to their success and well-being. These activities also strengthen peer and faculty relationships, which are critical to student success.
The Data: Campus Activities, Belonging, and Retention
It’s not surprising, but still encouraging, to see research continue to back up what we’ve long known anecdotally: students who feel they belong stick around and succeed.
As research has found, a sense of belonging is a significant predictor of retention because it strengthens a student’s commitment to their university. Further studies show that:
- Students involved in extracurricular activities are more likely to persist from first to second year.
- Even passive participation, such as attending campus events, can increase retention among first-year students.
This is particularly impactful for students from historically marginalized backgrounds or those navigating college as first-generation students.
A Shared Responsibility: How You Can Help
We know belonging isn’t created by one program—it’s an ecosystem. That’s why it’s so important to see campus activities as a shared responsibility, not a single department’s domain. Here at Tech, that means intentionally fostering partnerships across every corner of campus to better serve our students.
Faculty and staff can make a tremendous difference by recognizing the educational value of campus engagement and helping students see involvement as part of their education—not separate from it.
We hope you’ll join us. You can start by encouraging students to explore involvement opportunities, attend campus events, and engage with our leadership programs, but we encourage you to go a step further:
- Stop by and chat with the organization hosting an event by the Husky statue.
- Cheer on the student from your class in the Winter Carnival royalty competition.
- Reach out about being a Cluster Facilitator for LeaderShape Institute.
- Say yes when you’re asked to advise a student organization or let us know you’re interested in taking on this role.
Let us know if there are ways we can support the campus activities happening in your corner of campus, too. Together, we can ensure every Husky finds a meaningful place in our community—because when students belong, they stay, they grow, and they succeed.
To learn more about SLI programs and resources, visit mtu.edu/student-leadership.
To share an opportunity for collaboration, email me at dlmeirow@mtu.edu.
This post was inspired by ongoing conversations in the field of campus activities, including the valuable research compiled in the National Association for Campus Activities 2025 white paper, “Making the Case for Campus Activities”.