2015 Thursday -- Student Voices

Today was the second day of our three days of in-service time before the semester kicks off this coming week. Yesterday we had students with us, but today more students were available to join our meeting and we even had the privilege of listening to a student panel that was basically designed and focused on helping faculty learn what students think will help make them be successful.
 
The focus of our three days is to work on “completion,” which is all about getting students through the two-year college. The percentage of students who actually find the designated exit, the one marked “successfully finished,” are very few. More students than you would believe just drop-out and never come back.
 
Getting students to the designated exit really happens when everyone -- faculty, staff, and administrators --  focus on student success. So today we heard some of the students' personal stories. One student spoke about losing her job of 19 years as a property manager when she had to be absent for a month to take care of her husband who had back surgery. She and her husband and three sons became homeless and lived in a shelter when she found her way to the campus to enroll. Another student spoke about coming to America three years ago from the Middle East and not knowing a word of the English language. We were all very touched by their struggles and their victories.
 
I thoroughly enjoyed being with the students today. I ate lunch with some of them and I was in small groups with them. Getting to know other people is very interesting and it certainly was today. 

Good night from 
a very hot southern California,
Rosie (& Mr. Fun), aka