We've made a considerable effort at our school to change the focus of retention efforts from reactive to proactive. If a student drops out in the 3rd class, it's likely not due to the 3rd class, but to what happened long before. We seek to have our students so incredibly engaged in their program that they can't possibly imagine not persisting to the next class. Our faculty play a huge part in that effort. By positioning our best, most engaging faculty in the early classes, we create a culture of excitement and belonging that assists with retention efforts. I view our best instructors as those who can "edutain" meaning both educate and entertain to the point of making the hard work of learning fun as well as informative.