In spring 1997, a study was conducted to examine whether institutional contact with the student (in the form of a retention award) has a positive effect on student persistence. An experimental design was used to conduct the study. A sample of students was drawn based on their academic performance in Spring 1996. First-time students with long-term educational goals who completed three or more units with a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher and received no "Withdrawal" grades were considered eligible for the retention award. A treatment group was randomly selected from the eligible students to receive the mailing, which included a retention award and a student satisfaction survey. Results included the following: (1) the persistence rate for treatment cases was 48.2%, while the persistence rate for the control group was 51.8%; (2) when examining the rates of student persistence, no significant differences existed for the treatment and control groups for gender, age, or ethnic group; (3) there were no significant findings for students based on their GPAs, units taken, or whether they were concurrently enrolled at a local university; and (4) it was found that human interaction might perform a stronger integrative function, and possibly address student concerns, more significantly than a certificate. (HAA)