As the number of college student parents, particularly those from foster youth backgrounds, continues to rise, understanding the factors that influence their academic success is of increasing importance. The primary purpose of the study is to investigate the effect of self-efficacy on academic success of college student parents from foster youth backgrounds, recognizing the unique challenges they face in juggling parental responsibilities alongside their pursuit of higher education. The study consists of a mixed-methods approach, combining a survey and focus group, to explore the self-efficacy beliefs of college student parents from foster youth backgrounds enrolled at community college and/or California State University systems. An online College Self-Efficacy Inventory (CSI) is employed to measure participants' self-efficacy levels. The study explores four areas: the relationship between self-efficacy scores and academic success as defined by GPA and persistence rates, the effects of the demographic factors of ethnicity on self-efficacy, and the relationship between institution types, sizes, and self-efficacy. Furthermore, qualitative findings provide insights into the specific self-efficacy factors that play a crucial role in their academic journey. These findings underscore the significance of interventions aimed at enhancing self-efficacy in college student parents, to ultimately facilitate and foster a more supportive educational environment.

CSUN's Academic Technology has leveraged the power of Canvas data to create an innovative early alert system that faculty are utilizing to tailor course communication and promote student engagement and belonging. During this virtual session, we will showcase the early alert system and demonstrate how a CSUN faculty member utilized the system to re-engage students with the course material, provide additional information about resources on campus, and help students feel a sense of belonging by checking in on their progress. Following our initial presentation, we will broaden the discussion to strategies and native Canvas tools that faculty across the CSU can leverage in their own courses to enhance interconnectedness with students and create a more supportive learning environment.