innovation
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A Caring Structure For some students, success in college is a matter of getting an opportunity. Others could use a little help in fully taking advantage of that opportunity. For those students, the news that Gannon University has been awarded a Student Support Services (SSS) grant from the U.S. Department of Education couldn’t have come at a better time. The grant, a renewal of a $1.1 million, five-year award, will greatly expand and enhance the academic support services for students who meet at least one of the following criteria: lowincome, first-generation and/or those who have a documented disability. Through the use of professional advisors, peer tutors and peer mentors, qualifying students can receive services such as individual tutoring, study skills workshops, guidance with course selection, financial literacy and career advising—all critical factors in successfully navigating the complex transition from high school to college.
Adam Nogaj, director of the STEM Center, has worked one-onone with students to prepare and train them to be tutors. Created from elements of the former Math Center and Tutoring Center, the STEM Center employs a form of what experts in the field call supplemental instruction.
“Ultimately we want the University to earn a reputation as the place to go for students who are looking for STEM careers, but also for students who want STEM literacy.”
The grant is part of the TRIO Student Support Services program, a federally funded initiative designed to help students maximize their skills and to assist them in working more effectively toward graduation.
These services are delivered through the University’s Student Success Center, which includes the Academic Advising Center, Programs for Students with Learning Disabilities and the newly created STEM Center designed to deliver assistance for students taking courses in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. These courses have become increasingly important even to students who don’t major in STEM fields due to employers placing greater emphasis on mathematical and technical literacy. The STEM Center, funded by another grant, is a pioneering effort to give students in a wide variety of academic disciplines the skills they need to succeed.
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gannon magazine
january 2016
As it is widely practiced, supplemental instruction uses student tutors who have succeeded in the course. The tutors sit in on the course for which they are offering assistance as a way to better understand the needs of the students they assist. “They are there not just to answer questions posed by the students they help,” said Adam Nogaj, director of the STEM Center, “but to also propose questions.” Nogaj calls this structured learning environment STEM-PASS (Peer-Assisted Study Scheme).
“Building a Gannon-specific tool that our students can use is important,” Nogaj said. “General research shows that smaller, private schools support students better than other types of colleges. We have a caring infrastructure to begin with, and this makes it even better. “Ultimately we want the University to earn a reputation as the place to go for students who are looking for STEM careers, but also for students who want STEM literacy,” Nogaj said. “For students who want to learn and succeed here, we now have what they need in terms of support.” Combined with college-access initiatives such as GO College and the Archbishop Gannon Scholars program, and bolstered by the receipt of a historic grant, the University is making giant strides to increase both opportunity and success.