Summer Reading #2: Relationship-Rich Education: How Human Connections Drive Success in College

By Erin Kraal

Next Book: Relationship-Rich Education: How Human Connections Drive Success in College by Peter Felten and Leo Lambert

Missed Reading #1? Check it out!

Who this book is for:

• Readers who enjoy personal stories and interviews

• Anyone on campus—not just faculty—who interacts with students

• Those concerned about students who don’t take advantage of opportunities

• Advocates for special populations First Year Seminar (FYS), First-Gen, TRIO, PROFs, etc.)

• Someone looking for a book that also transitions well to students (see bonus review)

• Groups rethinking or building retention initiatives

• People interested in the whole campus ecosystem, not just classroom pedagogy

I’ve had Relationship-Rich Education on my shelf for over a year. I’ve read a few chapters, skimmed others, and it was almost chosen as our pedagogy book group’s pick last year. This summer, the CEL Classroom Visits Community of Practice (co-led by Andy Arnold and Megan O’Bryne) worked through a few chapters, and it sparked some great conversation.

Felten and Lambert are well-known in faculty development circles, and this book has been widely cited for illuminating best practices. What makes their approach stand out is that instead of rehashing existing research, they went out and interviewed thousands of faculty, staff, administrators, and students across dozens of colleges. Through these stories, they build an oral history of college life—and at the center of successful experiences, they find one thing: relationships.

They call for “a radical shift to instead think about higher education from a relational perspective, that is, designing students’ pathways through college with the belief that what graduates will value most about college in the end are the significant relationships they formed during those years, rather than whether they earned a B+ or A- in US History.” (p. 60)

The book blends data with stories that bring the findings to life. It spans the entire ecosystem of a student’s experience—from orientation to internships, from classrooms to libraries, from clubs to work-study. The authors even advocate a concept they call “radical welcome,” where students are continuously engaged in opportunities to build connections.

At first, the stories are inspiring—you’ll want to launch eight new initiatives on the spot. But then chapter two grounds you in reality: if relationships are such a clear “no-brainer,” why aren’t we doing this already? Here, the authors surface barriers ranging from student expectations to the hidden curriculum, and even institutional processes that inadvertently discourage relationship-building. A memorable quote from Randy Bass, a Dean at Georgetown University, captures the tension: “how effing hard most faculty and staff work with students every day. There’s so much invisible work going on that is rooted in relationships with students.” (p. 57)

Subsequent chapters shine a spotlight on that invisible work. They explore how culture, onboarding, classroom design, libraries, tutoring centers, undergraduate research, and even work-study jobs can either foster or hinder meaningful connections. Though written before the pandemic, the book’s arguments feel even more urgent today. While it doesn’t offer a one-size-fits-all blueprint, it does provide checklists and frameworks that function like a well-organized scrapbook of actionable ideas.

I’ll admit: my copy is full of sticky notes. If I could choose one campus-wide read right now for faculty, staff, and administrators, this would be it.

Bonus Review: A Student-Facing Companion

A few years after Relationship-Rich Education, Felten and Lambert teamed up with Isis Artze-Vega and Oscar Miranda Tapia to create a student version: Connections Are Everything: A College Guide to Relationship-Rich Education.

This adaptation reworks the original ideas into a practical handbook for students, complete with breakout boxes of facts, templates for writing emails, and even a glossary of “college words.” It would make an excellent shared read with students, especially in FYS courses.

Even better—it’s free. Thanks to a generous grant, the book is available as an Open Educational Resource (OER). We also have a hard copy in the Rohrbach Library for anyone who prefers print.

If you teach FYS, we’d love to hear your thoughts: could this book engage your students?

References

• Relationship-Rich Education: How Human Connections Drive Success in College Peter Felten & Leo M. Lambert. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020.

• Connections Are Everything: A College Guide to Relationship-Rich Education

  Peter Felten, Leo M. Lambert, Isis Artze-Vega & Oscar Miranda Tapia. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2023.

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Dr. Erin Kraal is the current Faculty Director for the Center for Engaged Learning and a professor in the Department of Physical Sciences, where she teaches planetary science, astronomy, geology, and science writing. She is particularly interested in exploring how faculty teach and students learn the process of science. In her non-work time, she likes to hike, travel, and cook, and has recently taken up a new hobby of learning to watercolor (yeah, YouTube videos!)