By John Dudley, University Communications and Marketing
A record number of students are benefiting from the 四虎影视 Academic Success Center since it significantly started expanding its services throughout the past year.
Year-over-year utilization of the center, which provides access to tutoring and writing support, was up 75% during the 2023-24 academic year compared to the prior year 鈥� thanks to a series of changes that ASC Director Zoraya Betancourt calls 鈥渢ransformative.鈥�
Academic Success Center Director Zoraya Betancourt
The changes include reorganizing staff to put more practitioners in student-serving roles and adopting a case management approach in collaboration with 四虎影视鈥檚 highly successful Office of Academic Advocacy.
鈥淎fter COVID-19, we weren鈥檛 sure how quickly students would return to in-person services,鈥� Betancourt said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e invested heavily in hiring and revisiting our approach to ensure students have all the resources they need, academically and even socially, as they settle into college life.鈥�
A cornerstone of the revamped center is a new care management model that provides tailored support for not only academic mentoring and tutoring, but also non-academic issues students may face, especially those experiencing on-campus learning for the first time.
Academic Services Administrator Larry Billue Jr.
鈥淭he benefit of the model is that it has allowed us to assist students who were lost or felt helpless while dealing with the number of different situations in their life,鈥� said Academic Services Administrator Larry Billue Jr., the center鈥檚 point person for care management initiatives.
The approach enables the center鈥檚 practitioners to work at a pace that matches students鈥� needs and make referrals to other resources across campus, including the Office of Academic Advocacy.
鈥淚f our conversation takes three hours, it takes three hours,鈥� Billue said of meetings with students. 鈥淚f it means helping them for my entire workday, then so be it. The model is also beneficial to our student staff and has led to a better bond between them and the administrators. They feel they are cared for and seen for their individuality.鈥�
In addition to care management, the center鈥檚 enhanced services also include:
- Academic Peer Mentors, who meet face-to-face or online with students to provide individualized advice on topics such as time management, organization, test preparation, motivation, academic and career exploration and involvement with campus groups and activities.
- Book-A-Tutor, which provides personalized in-person tutoring for all currently enrolled 四虎影视 undergraduate students. The service enables students to schedule one-on-one sessions with trained 四虎影视 peer tutors in various STEM subjects, with group appointments available on request.
- Write-A-Bull, part of the center鈥檚 Writing Studio, which offers free online, asynchronous writing assistance. Students can submit their documents and receive written feedback from tutors.
- Peer Assisted Study Sessions, providing voluntary, informal out-of-class group meetings led by trained student leaders that include collaborative work and activities. PASS leaders are jointly selected by Academic Success Center staff and course faculty, and they focus on materials that are relevant to students and share tips and advice on studying and maximizing their potential.
- The PORTAL (Peer Online Resources for Tutoring and Learning), is a new initiative focused on
meeting students鈥� learning needs outside of the ASC鈥檚 traditional hours of operation.
The service provides one-on-one online peer tutoring sessions and teams with faculty
to create learning resources that are easily accessible through the ASC website.
Support that adapts to individual student needs
Students who visit the center and staff who work there agree that the investment is already paying dividends.
Anthony Olguin Donu is a philosophy major from St. Petersburg who scheduled a meeting with an academic peer mentor when he had trouble balancing coursework and began falling behind on assignments.
鈥淪he gave me advice on how to move forward by taking baby steps to find the root of my academic issues,鈥� Olguin Donu said. 鈥淪he helped me learn to not overwhelm myself and to communicate with my instructors about what I've been dealing with.鈥�
Because the center鈥檚 academic peer mentoring is individualized, mentors can adapt support to the needs of each student.
Isabelle Cavazos, a learning and development facilitator at the Academic Success Center since May 2023, supervises a mentor who began meeting with a neurodivergent student last spring to provide note-taking strategies. Neurodivergence includes conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Academic Success Center tutor Jessica Lospenuso
Over time, the mentor developed an understanding of how the student learned and worked with them to create systems for their approach to studying.
鈥淎s they established a strong mentoring relationship, the student also shared insight on the personal circumstances impacting their academics,鈥� Cavazos said. 鈥淭he mentor offered guidance, support and connection to campus resources.鈥�
In some cases, students who have received support from the center end up coming back to