Every student is different, of course, but it’s likely most can use a little help once in a while as they navigate through their college experience. The Office of Student Success helps students do just that through individual attention and support.

“We are here to support students in many different ways,” says Kim Cooney, director of student success. “Our office is academically focused, but we do help students with social and financial pieces as well.”

The Office of Student Success provides a variety of academic advising assistance, including registration support, selecting a major, faculty advisor meeting preparation and transfer process support. Students also can turn to the Office of Student Success if they are struggling with time management, organization, or any of the many aspects of college life.

The staff there also serve as advisors for students who have not yet declared a major.

“One of the things that we can offer, that other schools may not be able to, is one-on-one attention,” says Clare Doyle, associate director of student success. “A lot of our students really enjoy having the personal attention.”  

One way the office assists students is by creating a college success plan, helping them identify individual goals and create action plans to achieve them.

“We are here to help students make the most of their overall college experience,” says Kaitlin Wolfert, student success advocate. “Maybe that is helping a student get involved in extracurricular activities, but that success plan will look different for every student.”

Tailoring support and assistance for each student is a must. For example, student-athletes often need different forms of support because of their schedules.

“I help a lot with motivation and goal-setting activities,” says Jessica Day, assistant director of academic success and engagement. “I look to help the student-athletes find the time and motivation to complete all of the tasks they have at hand. Especially for first-year students, because it can be overwhelming.”

Continuing to look for new ways to offer support to students, the Office of Student Success and the Teaching and Learning Center are currently presenting the “Taking Steps Towards Success Workshop Series.”

“The Workshop Series was a pilot this semester,” says Cooney. “We started designing it for students on academic warning and probation, but then we opened it up to all students because the topics will help students at every level, whether they are a first year, on track, not on track or somewhere in between.”

Some of the workshops offered in the series are “Improving your Self-Management Techniques,” “Exploring Study Skills,” and “Appreciating our Individuality and What Matters Most.”

— Cristina Diaz ’15