The Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) honored Southwestern University with the 2025 Retention & Persistence Laurels Award at their recent Chief Student Affairs Officers gathering at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida.

The Retention & Persistence Laurels Award is bestowed as programs or services merit the consortium’s recognition for outstanding commitment to student success. Southwestern was nominated and recognized for its initiative to subsidize fraternity and sorority new member fees for students with financial need.

“ACS and our Chief Student Affairs Officers congratulate and commend [Vice President for Student Life] Shelley Story, [Associate Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students] Gerald Jones, and all at Southwestern involved with the development and implementation of this effort to support student retention and persistence,” ACS President Anna Drake Warshaw, Ph.D. said.

The Retention & Persistence Laurels Award recognizes programs, services, or initiatives that promote and deliver increased retention and/or persistence of students at ACS member institutions. Bonus credit is typically given for programs, services, or initiatives that require partnership across multiple divisions of a university.

Southwestern’s award-winning program involved collaboration between Student Life, Financial Aid, and Greek Life to help cover the costs of fraternity and sorority new member fees for students with financial need.

“We are honored by the Associated Colleges of the South’s recognition of this initiative supporting student success and retention,” Story said. “Knowing that our students who join fraternities and sororities are very likely to persist and graduate from Southwestern, we are fortunate to be able to provide financial support so that participation in Greek Life is inclusive and even more accessible to interested students.”

The ACS is made up of fifteen nationally recognized colleges and universities committed to providing the best liberal arts education possible. Southwestern is joined in the ACS by Centenary College of Louisiana, Centre College, Davidson College, Furman University, Hendrix College, Millsaps College, Morehouse College, Rhodes College, Rollins College, Sewanee – University of the South, Spelman College, Trinity University, the University of Richmond, and Washington and Lee University.