Youth Today, the newspaper of the youth development field, recently profiled a program for probationary students at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga, California, in its YouthWorkTalk discussion forum. Developed as part of MDRC’s Opening Doors demonstration, the two-semester program sought to get students on probation back on track. Students took a “College Success” course, taught by a college counselor, that provided basic information on study skills and the requirements of college. As part of the course, students were expected to visit the college’s “Success Centers,” where they could receive supplementary individualized or group instruction in math, reading, and writing.

A report published by MDRC in April found that the program nearly doubled the proportion of students who moved off probation, while increasing the average number of credits that those students earned and the proportion who earned a grade point average of 2.0 or higher.

Reporter Jamaal Abdul-Alim described the experiences of one Chaffey student:

After partying and slacking off caused her grades to slip at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Lauren Cocroft had a serious decision to make when administrators told she couldn’t remain on academic probation much longer.

She could take a special guidance course on how to be a better student and visit the school’s “Success Center” at least five times each semester for much-needed tutoring. Or she could go it alone and see what happens.

Either way, if her 1.25 GPA didn’t become a 2.0 — enough for her to get off probation — she’d be shown the door.

“I was crying, like, ‘Oh, my God,’” Cocroft, 23, recalled thinking at the time, embarrassed at the prospect of flunking out.

Cocroft accepted the help that the school offered through a newly-adopted program called Enhanced Opening Doors. As its name implies, the program is an improved version of a predecessor called Opening Doors.

Both programs aimed to help underperforming students get off academic probation by giving them extra help through the special guidance course and in-house tutoring center. The key difference is that while Opening Doors made that help optional, Enhanced Opening Doors made it mandatory.

A new study shows that the optional approach failed to make a meaningful difference, but the mandatory approach nearly doubled the number of students who regained good academic standing.

The lesson for college administrators and others is that when it comes to dealing with students who need to get their academic acts together, don’t just suggest how they can do it. Make them.