AcAdemic connector AcAdemic And LeArning Support ServiceS 2013–14 edition

Academic and Learning Support Services
2013–14 Edition
A c adem i c C o nne cto r
A Newsletter for Families and Friends of New La Salle University Students Published by the Office of the Provost
Following is a summary of the academic support services
we offer to help our students succeed. These services are
comprehensive, effective, and readily available to all. Last year
alone, nearly 1,500 students benefited by utilizing our services.
• The Sheekey Writing Center: The Writing Center provides
invaluable help on issues such as developing and/or
organizing ideas for a paper, citing sources, using proper
grammar, and more for assignments across the curriculum.
• Academic Coaching: The Academic Skills Coach helps
students develop the learning strategies that work best
for their individual learning styles. The coach addresses
the “how” of learning and best techniques for reading,
studying, time management, organization, test taking,
and note taking, among other things.
• Peer Tutors: Formally trained upperclass students help
fellow students with the course content in more than 70
courses. Supervised by a professional, our peer tutors are
a friendly and knowledgeable source of information and
inspiration.
• Skill-Building Workshops: Each semester, academic skills
workshops are offered to help students prepare for
exams, manage time, prioritize, assess learning styles,
tackle reading assignments, write better papers, etc.
• The Freshman Advisers and Peer Mentors: Every student
is assigned a freshman adviser—faculty and staff members
who offer advice about campus resources, policies, and
processes, as well as help with the selection of courses and
registration. Peer mentors are also available to help new
students with the transition from high school to college.
Resourc es for Families
My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a
Student by Rebekah Nathan
Letting Go: A Parent’s Guide to Understanding the College Years
by Karen Levin Coburn and Madge Lawrence Treeger
In Addition to Tuition: The Parents’ Survival Guide to Freshman
Year of College by Marian Edelman Borden, Mary Anne Burlinson,
and Elsie R. Kearns
When Your Kid Goes to College by Carol Barkin
College Decisions: A Practical Guide to Success in College by Josh
Gerow and Nancy Gerow
Your College Experience: Strategies for Success by A. Jerome
Jewler, John Gardner, and Mary Jane McCarthy
Preparing for College: Practical Advice for Students and Their
Families by John Rooney, Ph.D., and John Reardon, Ph.D.
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D.
Generation Me by Jean M. Twenge, Ph.D.
The Academic and Learning Support Team
Teri Ceraso, Assistant Provost for Academic Support and Student
Success
Jaime Longo, Ph.D., Director of Academic Support Programs
Phenix Frazier Badmus, Director of First-Year Advising and
Communication
Mary Robertson, Ph.D., Director, Sheekey Writing Center
and Supplemental Instruction Program
• Academic Discovery Program (ADP), Summit Program, and
Academic Support Services for Student Athletes: These
programs provide additional resources that span tutoring,
counseling, life skills, and developmental education for
targeted populations.
Melissa Hediger Gallagher, Academic Skills Coach and Manager of
Academic Support Services
• GradesFirst and Early Alerts: GradesFirst is an electronic
system that allows students to access and schedule a tutor
or the Academic Skills Coach. It also includes an early alert
system that allows instructors to communicate directly
with their students and the students’ advisers regarding
concerns they have about student performance in the
classroom.
Len Daniels, Counselor/Assistant Director of the Academic
Discovery Program
• Supplemental Instruction and Facilitated Study Groups:
Formally trained student leaders, attached to some of the
most historically difficult classes, facilitate multiple weekly
group study sessions for the students in those classes.
For more information about Academic and Learning
Support Services, contact Teri Ceraso at 215.951.1807 or
[email protected].
Kathleen Kaar, Director of Tutoring Support Services
and ESL Tutor
Robert Miedel, Director of the Academic Discovery Program
Shaena Moody, Academic Achievement Coordinator, The Summit
Program
Brother John Kane, F.S.C., Director of Academic Support Services
for Student Athletes
Christine Cahill, Associate Director of Academic Support Services
for Student Athletes
www.lasalle.edu/portal/learningsupport
Student Tutors:
Source of Information and Inspiration
Mark ”died” twice onstage in La Salle’s production of Jekyll
and Hyde because of a curtain malfunction, Chris threw a
basketball for the Explorers team, and Amanda served as
editor-in-chief of the college newspaper. Past tutors brought,
and current tutors still bring, their varied talents and
perspectives to tutoring as they assist students in their efforts
to write better papers, master course content, and improve
their skills as students across the curriculum.
Tutors are available in more than 70 subjects, including
writing, and they are often referred to as ”coaches,” a great
description of how they perform. As one might assume,
writing tutors work with students concerning their writing,
but they also assist with papers from every discipline and at
every grade level, including graduate coursework. Subject
tutors help with course content and with how a student
develops mastery of a particular subject.
A writing tutor may be reading a graduate nursing paper
in one session and an undergraduate philosophy paper in
the next. Sometimes students come to the Writing Center
with just an assignment and a messy assortment of ideas. In
those instances, writing tutors help students brainstorm, find
the best ideas, and create a draft thesis and plan of attack.
Sometimes the tutors do not deal directly with the writing at
all but address issues that may impede the writing process,
such as time management or inadequate research skills.
The challenges are clear: Tutors need a variety of academic
skills, a good understanding of the writing and learning
processes, and good people skills. Tutors find that their own
skills improve through the process of helping others. As
one new tutor put it, she didn’t anticipate tutoring to be as
demanding as it was, nor did she expect it to be as fulfilling as
it turned out to be.
For more information about writing and subject tutoring,
contact Mary Robertson, Ph.D., Director, Sheekey Writing
Center, at 215.951.1299 or [email protected], and/or
Kathleen Kaar, Director of Tutoring Support Services, at
215.951.1822 or [email protected].
CHALLENGES NEW STUDEN TS FACE
If college requires 15 hours of class time per week, that means
LOTS of free time, right? Unfortunately, this belief, which
many first-year students embrace, is anything but true. While
new students may have more time outside of class, they
need to do more for those classes than was required in high
school. However, it can be very easy for those free hours to
quickly slip away, leaving students in a last-minute panic. Time
management is key and changes dramatically between high
school and college.
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Other academic challenges new students face include reading
more complex materials, writing lengthier papers, citing
sources, working in groups, presenting materials orally, and
pursuing majors for which they are not adequately prepared.
Each student’s study and learning approach will be different,
but they all need to do similar things—utilize resources,
keep track of long-term assignments, meet daily and weekly
obligations, attend class, and put two to three hours of work
in for each hour in class. Planning, organizing, seeking help,
managing time, participating in class, and studying hard can
lead to success. For more information about academic success
strategies, contact Melissa Hediger Gallagher at 215.951.5115
or [email protected].
Group Study: Effective and Enjoyable
One very effective study strategy for success in college
is working in groups or group study. It is common to see
studious seniors sitting with their heads together, poring over
notes, reviewing their work, and studying for exams.
One of the benefits of group study is the emotional support
that students provide for one another, which is especially
important for first-generation college students. These students
and most freshmen can experience a type of culture shock, as
college is certainly different and more demanding than high
school in many ways.
Supplemental Instruction (SI) is one program at La Salle
that provides students with the oppoprtunity for structured
group study. Attached to classes considered to be “historically
difficult,” usually math and science classes, trained student
leaders hold regular study sessions for the students. The “SI
Leader” facilitates activities that encourage group work and
help students master difficult concepts in targeted classes.
At the national level, the Posse Foundation recognizes the
importance of students, especially urban students, working
together in groups (or posses) to increase their academic
achievement rates as well as their retention and graduation
rates. The Posse Foundation’s goal is to increase the success of
urban students at competitive universities. It’s a simple idea:
Students who work together, “ride” together, and support
one another tend to do much better than those who do not.
(Information on the Posse Foundation can be found in the
e-newsletter ”Diversity Web,” a publication of the Association
of American Colleges and Universities: www.diversityweb.org/
Digest/vol8no1/bial.cfm.)
The lesson is clear: Encourage your students to use SI and
find friends to support them in studying. Doing so will make
college more enjoyable and help everyone earn better grades.
For more information about Supplemental Instruction, contact
Mary Robertson, Ph.D., at 215.951.1299 or robertso@lasalle.
edu. or information about developmental education, contact
Robert Miedel, Academic Discovery Program Director, at
215.951.1084 or [email protected].
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. A
re students’ grades sent home?
A. No. Grades, including mid-term grades, are posted online.
Students should share, and parents should ask to see,
them at the appropriate times (October and December).
Q. M
y child is a strong student; therefore, she does not need
Academic Support Services. … Is that correct?
A. Not necessarily. Academic Support Services are in place
for all students and tapping the services can help good
students become even better students.
Q. D
o we pay extra for support services such as tutoring,
counseling, learning instruction, or academic skills
workshops?
A. No. These services are covered by tuition and fees.
Q. W
ho develops the second-semester schedule, and when
do students register for second-semester classes?
A. New students should begin to think about the next
semester’s courses early in the first semester, as they will
register in mid-November. Each student is required to
meet with an adviser in early November, and students are
expected to go to that meeting with a proposed schedule
in hand. The adviser will approve it or suggest changes
and provide the necessary “pin number” for registration.
Q. If a first-year student receives an unsatisfactory progress
report, what should he or she do?
A. Students who receive notification of poor performance
or unsatisfactory grades should think about the reasons
for their poor performance. Are they struggling with the
subject? Having difficulty with studying or reading? Are
they overextending themselves with work, activities, and
parties? Are they having relationship difficulties, having
trouble adjusting, or engaging in unhealthy behaviors?
Depending on the answers to those questions, there are a
myriad of campus resources available. Students should talk
with their instructors and consult with their advisers for
some direction, or they may connect with the appropriate
resource directly—Writing Center, Counseling Center,
Academic Skills Coach, Tutoring Services, Career Services,
Multicultural Center, Disabilities Accommodations, or the
Dean’s Office.
Q. G
iven that time management is the issue first-year
students wrestle with most, what do you suggest?
A. Time management and responsibility for deadlines
are of utmost importance. Meeting individually with
the Academic Skills Coach and attending the time
management workshop will help. Students should also
become familiar with the University catalog and academic
calendar, located on the Registrar’s Web site, and they
should pay close attention to their course syllabi, using
both a planner and a wall calendar to track short-and
long-term assignments and extracurricular activities.
www.lasalle.edu/portal/learningsupport
Q. W
hat is FERPA?
A. FERPA stands for the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act and is a federal law that stipulates that a
student’s educational record may not be disclosed to
anyone—including parents—outside the University
without the student’s written permission. Students may
complete the University’s Privacy Waiver through the
Registrar’s Office.
Q. W
hat provisions are made for students with learning
differences or other disabilities?
A. S tudents with formally documented disabilities are
entitled to reasonable accommodations within the
classroom. Such accommodations may include additional
time for tests, use of a tape recorder for note-taking,
use of electronic software, interpreters, assistance with
writing assignments, and reading skills development.
Students and their families should consult with the
Affirmative Action Officer as soon as possible to
determine what specific assistance they are entitled to.
For more information, call 215.951.1014.
Q. What is the New Lasallians Personal Profile?
A. E
very incoming student is asked to complete a
questionnaire designed to help us more fully understand
each individual student’s concerns. This information is
made available to the freshman advisers and appropriate
Academic and Learning Support staff.
Q. What kinds of co-curricular activities are available?
A. T
he University offers a variety of travel/study, servicelearning, internship, and co-op opportunities. New
students should consult with their adviser, department
chair, or Dean’s Office for more information.
Academic Support Services
for Student Athletes: It’s a Win-Win
We all know that time management is one of the biggest
issues plaguing first-year students. But imagine if you’re a
Division I athlete. In addition to 15-plus hours of class per
week, you’ve got 20-plus hours per week of demanding
physical practice. Add to that the expectation that 30-plus
hours per week is normal in terms of homework.
It’s no wonder that the student athlete’s schedule is atypical.
It’s filled with mental and physical challenges that can
take their toll in many ways, particularly when it comes to
academics. It’s not easy, but nearly 500 La Salle students
face these challenges every year. And while student athletes
have access to support services across campus, they also have
access to the Office of Academic Support Services for Student
Athletes, located in Hayman Hall, where committed staff
members offer tutoring, academic coordination, workshops,
and personal counseling that help athletes become winners,
not just in competition, but also in the classroom.
For more information about Academic Support Services
for Student Athletes, contact Brother John Kane, F.S.C., at
215.951.1681 or [email protected].
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Did you know that…
• Students may change their schedules through the first
week of classes.
• All first-year students will receive mid-term grades eight
weeks into the semester.
• Each instructor distributes a syllabus full of information
about how the individual instructor structures his or
her class. It includes contact information, grading and
absence policies, and what is expected in general.
• Final grades will be issued to all students before the
Christmas break.
• In addition to their majors, students may declare
minors and double majors, and they may change their
majors (50 percent do) by visiting the Dean’s Office in
their respective schools (Arts and Sciences, Business, or
Nursing and Health Sciences).
• Students may formally withdraw from a class. The last
day to do so in fall 2013 is November 1. Students who
withdraw receive a “W” instead of a grade and need
to make up the credits, perhaps during the summer.
There are also financial aid and housing ramifications
if the courseload drops below 12 credits (the minimum
required for full-time status).
• To graduate, students must maintain minimum grade
point averages (GPA) that range from 2.0 to 3.0 in the
major and overall, depending on the major.
• Students who drop below the required GPA face
academic probation and, after two semesters, they may
be suspended. (See the Undergraduate Catalog for a
complete description of the academic censure policy.)
• Students may take two elective courses on a pass/fail
basis during their time at La Salle.
• To improve their GPAs, students should repeat failed
courses (F), but they can only do so here at La Salle.
• Because of privacy issues, if a parent wishes to discuss
a student’s academic record, the student must sign a
waiver, available through the Registrar’s Office.
• For students undecided about their majors or their
career direction, the Career Services Center is a great
resource.
• The Student Counseling Center is a terrific resource for
dealing with a wide variety of personal issues, including
depression, anxiety, peer pressure, drug or alcohol
abuse, adjustment problems, and eating disorders.
• Students tell us the issue they wrestle with most is time
management, followed by writing lengthier papers and
managing the reading load.
• Freshmen may register for their spring semester courses
from November 21 on, and they must meet with their
freshman advisers in advance.
The Freshman Adviser: Guiding Your Students through the First Year
Of all of the available resources, one of the most important
for new students to take advantage of is the freshman
adviser. Research indicates that academic advising, especially
during the first year, is crucial to student success. Every new
student at La Salle is assigned to a freshman adviser, usually a
faculty member from an academic department who provides
a foundation for helping new students transition from high
school to college.
In addition to the freshman adviser, students may take
advantage of the peer mentor program for first-year
students. Big Es (La Salle mentors) provide an upperclass peer
connection and resource for La Salle freshmen, and they act as
supportive listeners and campus connectors. Big Es also offer
motivation, guidance, knowledge, and support throughout
the first year, and they promote student success.
The goal of these relationships is to help new students
develop self-efficacy skills and accept responsibility for their
own learning and decision making. They also assist with the
attainment of academic, career, and life goals. Successful
students get to know their academic advisers and Big Es and
take full advantage of these valuable resources.
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What else can a parent do to help?
1) Be sure to reinforce with your son or daughter that the
freshman adviser should be the first point of contact for
questions about his or her major, academic policies, and course
selection.
2) Throughout the semester, confirm that your student has
been in contact with his or her academic adviser, especially
if he/she needs referrals to other campus resources or has
academic questions or concerns.
3) Encourage your students to become familiar with the
services of their Dean’s Office. The assistant deans in particular
are available to work with students on a variety of issues,
including transferring credits, studying abroad, withdrawing
from classes, taking summer school courses at another
institution, and much more.
For more information about the Freshman Advising and Peer
Mentor Programs, contact Phenix Frazier Badmus, Director of
First-Year Advising and Communication, at 215.951.5005 or
[email protected].