In an effort to improve first-year retention of low-income students, the University of Minnesota introduced the "Retaining all Our Students" initiative, according to a press release.

"The University of Minnesota is committed to paving the road to prosperity for young people with limited means," University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler said in a statement. "We're all in. We intend to lower the barriers for low-income students to attend the U and obtain their degrees. This is about changing their lives by helping to set their career paths in motion."

Low-income students at the university are defined as Pell grant recipients, according to a press release.

The RaOS initiative will provide an enhanced financial literacy program specifically designed to meet the needs of low-income students and their families, a summer seminar and develop better tracking tools for advisors to more closely monitor academic progress during "the critical first year," university officials said in a statement. The program will also provide peer tutoring support for students in key, foundational courses such as math, economics, chemistry and writing, and providing specialized training for peer tutors.

"What sets this new University of Minnesota initiative apart, coupled with our long history of engaging and supporting students with limited means, is our top-notch financial literacy program," said Kaler. "Our new commitment will include specifically tailored educational materials that focus on the financial planning and information needs of low-income students and their families."

The initiative will build on the success of existing University of Minnesota efforts such as the President's Emerging Scholars (PES) Program, the U Promise Scholarship and the University's financial literacy program, "Live Like a Student Now (So You Don't Have to Later)."

Annually, approximately 21 percent of undergraduate freshmen at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities are Pell grant recipients. University officials said that although they have "significantly increased" the first-year retention of undergraduate students over the past decade (from 85 to 90.4 percent), there is room for improvement when it comes to retaining low-income and first-generation students.

Current first-year retention is 90.4 percent for all incoming freshmen, but the rate is 86.9 percent for students who are Pell grant recipients.