Are you starting your first year in college and need
guidance? Are you a first-generation college student? Then Student Support
Services will be the right program for you. Student Support Services is a
program at Frostburg State University that helps many students throughout their
college experience. The advisors of the program are the director, Tam Lowry, Shawn
Jones, Don Maxwell, Holly Clark and Bridgette Karalewitz. The program’s main
mission is to help students stay in college until they graduate and give them
the support they need to stay motivated. The program is funded by the U.S.
Department of Education and has set guidelines for students who are eligible to
be a part of the program.
Student Support Services is also a
part of the Academic Success Network. Frostburg has the Center for Academic
Advising and Retention (CAAR) office. The CAAR office’s main job is to direct
and help students search for programs that promote academic success and helps
them stay on track. The services and programs included are an intro to Higher
Education course, assistance with transitioning for first-year college
students, an Academic Enrichment workshop, advising for students who are on
academic probation or have warnings and other academic help.
CAAR also has PASS which are Programs Advancing
Student Success. PASS offers free tutoring services for 100 and 200 level
courses such as Math, Computer Science and Economics. PASS also offers writing
assistance. There’s also a Developmental Math Program that offers pre and
intermediate algebra courses to help students who struggle in math increase
their skills and prepare for future math courses needed for their studies.
Disability Support Services (DSS) are also provided. The purpose of this
program is to give an equal academic opportunity and enhance learning for
students with any disability. Depending on the student’s disability, special
accommodations and services are provided for them such as; Extended time for
testing, Assistive technology, readers and scribes, private testing and
interpreting services.
Student Support Services was created
in the late 60's when President Lyndon B. Johnson had concerns about poverty in
America and wanted to help first-generation college students graduate. The
program has been in Frostburg for about 44 years. When asked about the origins
of the program Tam Lowry added that it started along with the Trio program
which started in high schools. In order to participate in the program, you have
to either be a first-generation college student, your family’s income is within
the set limit given by the Department of Education or if you have a documented
disability. When asked about the qualifications for SSS Tam Lowry added,
“Students must show an academic need, meaning they have a GPA below a 3.5 or a
low high school GPA.”
Photo of Advisor and Director of SSS, Tam Lowry.
Tam Lowry takes the role as both an advisor and
director of the program. She’s filled with a lot of energy and is very
welcoming. When asked about her role in the program she stated, “So, I advise
about 80+ Student Support Services students and then we do a lot of cross
referencing meaning I might work with a student for accounting help or tutoring
or they might meet with Holly or Shawn or Don for advising, if they’re one of
their regulars, but we each have about eighty something students.” Lowry called
the SSS program a “one-stop shop for anything college” because of the resources
that are available to students who are part of the program.
Photo of Academic Counselor and Student Developmental Specialist, Shawn Jones.
Shawn Jones is an academic counselor in the program,
but he helps students outside of the program as well. He stated that the main
goals of Student Support Services are to work with first-generation college
students, help students meet Financial Aid guidelines and provide all of their
services and resources from one year to the next. He has a lot of responsibilities
that includes being the advisor for multiple organizations, Jones stated “Right
now, I am the advisor of… a couple of organizations on campus. So that’s a way
to actually spread awareness about Student Support services as well.” Shawn
Jones does a lot of counseling for students and makes sure that they have the
right mindset in and outside of their studies. “Being an advisor, everyday is
different, and we focus on academic achievement,” Jones said.
Like Shawn Jones, Holly Clark is also an academic
counselor. When asked about her role as an advisor she said, “I work with
students individually on things like financial aid and career counseling.” She
also stated that she leads SSS workshops for things like academic counseling or
student loan help. Clark connects well with her students. When I asked how she
personally connects with her students she said that she likes asking them
questions about their lives, tries to attend events that the students are
performing in or leading and shows that she cares about them more than just
being a student at Frostburg.
Don Maxwell is known as the Math Specialist in the SSS
office while also working as an advisor. Maxwell said his main role as an
advisor is to help students stay on track and be successful in their courses.
When asked about how the program helps a student’s college experience Maxwell
stated, “I try to get students to take advantage of all the things college has
to offer, we (the staff) advise them to get involved with campus organizations
and we help them negotiate some of the difficult parts of college like
Financial aid.” Maxwell also offers tutoring for students in math and science
courses.
Bridgette Karalewitz is the administrative assistant
of the program. Karalewitz has a bright attitude and is very happy to help
students with anything they need. She showed that she really cared about her
students, like when I asked how she personally connects with them she said, “Oh
that’s a hard one… I feel like I’m the mother of our students, does that make
sense? Because I send them emails… I get a personal connection with some of
them and some I don’t get to know as well, but of the 275 sometimes I say I’m
the mother of the 275 students in the program.” Karalewitz made it clear that
the SSS advisors are there to help the students with many things ranging from
academic to personal problems. She also said that they are there from the
beginning until their students graduate. She added that the staff can be
considered as “all around advisors” because they help with more than just
school life.
Students have responsibilities of their own once they’re
in the program. These include making satisfactory academic progress and developing
and reaching their goals in an educational plan and goal statement. This is
effective for students who have trouble planning ahead and being prepared for
graduation. Students are also required to meet with their set advisor at least
three times a semester, inform the staff of any changes and to complete their
FAFSA application by February 1 of each academic year. These requirements
actually help students stay on track with their studies and keep the right
mindset throughout their college career.
Once students are approved to be a part of Student
Support Services, many resources are readily available. The program has many
types of workshops made to ensure each student’s academic success. The
workshops are held both in person and online through Blackboard. The program
also offers financial guidance, professional tutoring, help with study skills
and has a voucher program. The voucher program is made for students who wants
to attend cultural events, trips or other events like plays and concerts but
can’t afford them or need help with getting tickets. The program allows
students who are in SSS to get a voucher from the office and go to the event
for free. Financial help is also offered for students like scholarships and
grants. There’s a $342,918 budget for the participants of the program so most
of that is used for grants. Tam Lowry stated that financial help is mainly
offered to “first and second-year students because it’s such a pivotal time.”
Director Tam Lowry provided some information on the
statistics of the program. From 2015-16 the six-year grad rate was 63%. There
was a 90% persistence rate and 93% for those with a good academic standing. The
statistical reports are always a year behind meaning you can expect the reports
for the 2017-18 school year in 2019. All of these stats are needed by the
Federal government and she stated that this is the their way of keeping track
of the success of the program. Lowry
added that all of their numbers are really good. The max number of students
allowed into the program are 275.
I asked each advisor about ways to make students more
aware of the program. The tactics mentioned were student marketing, tables
being set up in the Lane Center, word of mouth, through FSU’s preview day,
weekend events and working with other organizations. These are all good ways to
spread the word quickly about Student Support Services and all it offers. It’s
also a great way to connect with students before they’re enrolled into the
program.
Overall, Student Support Services is a helpful program
that aids student in their progression through college. Many resources are
available to ensure that each student enrolled into the program reaches their
academic goals. Success is the main priority of the SSS staff. So, if you
qualify the best thing for you to do is drop by the office located in Pullen
Hall room 133 and talk to the one of the advisors about getting enrolled in the
program. It will help you build your future.
For more information related to SSS, click the links below:
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