How this college empowered students with AI chatbots

Walking down the corridors of Tallahassee Community College (TCC), you’ll feel the pulse of an institution renowned for its dedication to student success. Tallahassee Community College is more than just a school in the heart of Florida’s Big Bend region. It’s a vibrant community that caters to a diverse student body. Now imagine a college’s IT help desk receiving a staggering 20,000 calls every year—40% of which are related to forgotten passwords. 

Sounds intense, right? This was TCC’s reality. 
With their commitment to reducing barriers to education and fostering a supportive environment, they knew they needed a change. TCC set out to revolutionize its help desk to empower every student with the necessary tools to conquer their academic goals.
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The need for a change
Bret Ingerman, the Vice President of Information Technology at TCC, led the charge to integrate a chatbot solution into the service model.  “Our first foray into using a chatbot showed us the potential of what these tools could do, despite the limitations of the technology available at that time,” explains Ingerman. “We knew we wanted to do more, to go beyond the rudimentary and truly enhance our student services.”
In their quest to transcend these limitations, TCC turned to Gartner, a leading research and advisory company. This led to a pivotal partnership with Kore.ai.
As Ingerman remarks, “Kore.ai was not just a platform for us, it became a platform for growth”. This transformative collaboration sparked a wave of new possibilities for enhancing student interaction.
How TCC empowered their student services with AI Chatbots
With Kore.ai, TCC was able to revolutionize its student services. Seamlessly accessing the same student information as the staff, their new AI chatbot could handle a multitude of general questions — freeing up staff for more in-depth problem-solving.
The impact was staggering. Within months, calls to the IT help desk dropped by an impressive 40%. But it wasn’t just about reducing the call volume. As Ingerman emphasizes, “We were able to demonstrate a return on investment, and our goal wasn’t to reduce staff. The goal was to provide better services to our community”.
It didn’t end there. According to Ingerman, the Kore.ai chatbot was a solution that met their initial need but also “readily lent itself to meet needs we didn’t even know we had.” Once swamped with routine queries, the staff could engage in more meaningful problem-solving, tasks that are not easily automated.
Enhancing the Academic Experience with Kore.ai
TCC’s story is a beacon of transformation and innovation. As Ingerman puts it, “We can do things today we couldn’t do yesterday, and we’ll be able to do things tomorrow that we can’t do today.”
Through the strategic use of AI technology with Kore.ai, TCC has set a new benchmark for student services. It’s a tale of unwavering focus on student success, ensuring that their support systems evolve alongside the needs of their students and the ever-changing landscape of education technology.
Ready to witness how they made it all possible? or try AI chatbots for yourself.
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