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( Bluefield)—A $7,500 mini-grant award from the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) will help Bluefield State College establish a Student Success Center, designed to help students succeed as freshmen, then move smoothly into their sophomore year of studies.
The grant application, submitted by John Cardwell, BSC’s Executive Director/Enrollment Management, focuses upon improving BSC’s freshman-to-sophomore retention rate for first time, full-time students. “Through the grant, a Student Success Center will be established to focus upon and consolidate various intervention strategies to help students succeed during their first year of college, then continue toward their educational goals,” Cardwell said. He also noted that the Student Success Center will also serve as a catalyst for expanding a college-wide commitment to retention.
Plans call for the implementation of the Student Success Center this summer. Goals and objectives include identifying factors that place freshmen at risk in their quest to continue their college education, training at least five faculty to conduct one-on-one advising of all new freshmen students, then training at least 25 BSC employees and students to serve as mentors. Approximately 280 new freshman will be advised and a cohort of at least 100 freshmen will be involved in the Student Success Center’s mentoring program, according to Cardwell.
Future plans call for additional training in advising and mentorship, as well as ongoing intervention and support for students utilizing compatible retention strategies.
January 18, 2006
For additional information, contact Jim Nelson/Media Relations
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