Center for Student Success

Convocation welcomed First-Year students as new Javelinas.

Vol. 1, No. 1 MONTHLY NEWSLETTER AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2016

The Center for Student Success helps all incoming students have a comfortable transition into Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Over the course of four years, incoming students are assisted with the development of valuablelong-term skills and achievements. Together, the departments at the Center for Student Success provide a circle ofcare to all undergraduate students. The Center for Student Successprovides incoming freshmen with a comprehensive First-Year Experience and overall excellence in undergraduate education.

“Together, the departments at the Center for Student Success provide a circle of care to all

undergraduate students.”

WELCOME JAVELINAS!

The Center for Student Success at Texas A&M University-Kingsville believes in helping students take

full advantage of campus resources in order to build a successful academic and career path. Students receive assistance with choosing a major, are given a corresponding academic advisor, have continuous access to tutors, and are given the opportunity toparticipate in undergraduate research. In addition, all incoming high school students are provided with

a student mentor and take a First-Year Seminar course. The goal is to create a solid foundation for student success.

Our Mission and Promise

Creating a Pathfor Success

Center for Student Success

Teaching Methods for Student Success ▶

Freshman Convocation ▶Meet My Major ▶

Boys/Girls Night Out ▶

Opportunities for Student Success ▶

NewAdvising Staff ▶

Chess Player of the Month ▶

RECOGNITIONSPOTLIGHT

FALL EVENTS

▷ Advising Increase in Advising Staff ▷ First-Year Seminar ▷ Academic Career Literacy Fall Scholarship Opportunities ▷ AVID Teaching Methods for Student Success ▷ Common Read 101 Things To Do Before You Graduate ▷ Chess ▷ I-CARE Grant Course Redesign Competition ▷ Mentoring CRLA Certification ▷ Tutoring ▷ Pre-health Sciences Organizations for Pre-health Majors ▷ Starfish ▷ Dual Enrollment Increase in Student Success Rates

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Departments of the

2016 Fall Events

Meet Your Major allowed the I-CARE Grant and the Academic Literacy program to present early scholarship opportunities to students. Scholarships introduced at the event included nation-al, study abroad, and major specific scholarships.

▷ Teaching Methods for Student Success August 17 Teaching Methods for Student Success is a seminar held to teach Texas A&M-Kingsville faculty new and effective learn-ing strategies. The event highlighted the importance of collab-oration among students, followed by The Socratic Seminar, presented by special guest Rachel Juarez-Torres. Juarez-Tor-res informed faculty members about deep learning strategies that give students opportunities to engage in critical thinking, reading, collaborations, inquiry and dialogue. The seminar was presented to a total of 36 Texas A&M-Kingsville faculty members, 11 who were from the Center for Student Success.

▷ Freshman Convocation August 31 Freshman Convocation is an annual event that allows First-Year students to learn about the Javelina culture, interact with stu-dents of the same major, and strengthen their school community. Guest speaker and alumnus "Big Frank" Edward Franklin, gave a speech about his First-Year experience at Texas A&M-Kings-ville. Students were also greeted by the university's adminis-tration, who reminded them of the many resources available on

campus and to instill the Javelina pride.

▷ Meet Your Major September 2 Meet Your Major offered students a wide range of informa-tion associated with their college major. Students were given the opportunity to discover internships, scholarships, career paths, and study abroad programs in their respective field of study. Stu-dents were also invited to attend workshops held by Workforce Solutions that focused on résumé writing, interview skills, and career decision making.

▷ Guys' & Girls' Night Out September 1 & 6 This is the second year Texas A&M-Kingsville has held Guys' & Girls' Night Out. At the events, students learned about the importance of health and wellness through presentations and workshops. They were provided with resources and tools for campus safety, violence, STD’s, and general well-being. Dr. Steve F. Bain, Associate Professor and Chair, and the Education-al Leadership and Counseling Department spoke at Guys' Night Out. Guest speaker for Girls' Night Out was author of "Girl in the Woods" Aspen Matis.

Advancement Via Individual Determination

This seminar helped support Freshman Convocation, Meet Your Major, and Guys' & Girls' Night Out by making it a re-quired event for all the students taking UNIV 1101. The events are part of the First-Year Seminar's mission to help students transition into Texas A&M-Kingsville community and to achieve academic excellence.

GPS Mentors provided ushering assistance at Freshman Con-vocation and Guys' & Girls' Night Out. At Meet Your Major, mentors created informative poster boards and shared first hand experience on particular majors.

Mentoring

First-Year Seminar

SPONSORS OF THE FALL EVENTS

During Freshman Convocation, Dr. Richard Miller welcomed speaker and radio host, "Big Frank"

Student gets information from the college of their respective major.

Rachel Juarez-Torres presents a Socratic Seminar strategy.

I-CARE Grant

AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2016

AVID hosted its first fall professional development seminar titled Teaching Methods for Student Success. The event pro-vided faculty members with important teaching methods and resources they can apply to their courses and to their respective Center for Student Success departments.

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AVID

Recognition Spotlight

New Texas A&M Kingsville Advising Staff

Chess Player of the MonthGeorgia Olvera Georgia Olvera is a sophomore at Texas A&M-Kingsville majoring in engineering. At a young age, she won the under-10 division in the Blitz Competition, earning her an international chess title. In 2009, she won the Texas girls state championship chess tournament. After graduating from Odem High School, Olvera joined the Texas A&M-Kingsville chess team, which is proud to have her commitment and talent on the team.

AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2016

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Suzanne VillarrealCSDO • PSCKW

I became an Academic Advisor because... I believe in higher education and watching students reach their greatest potential in life. I love the fact that I am able to help out students with their aca-demic excellence.

Priscilla GuerraAll college majors • 61+ Hours • Music

I became an Academic Advisor because...I love education and helping students meet their goals. It makes me proud to see my students succeed!

Sasha DiazAlternate Pre-Engineering • Liberal Arts

I became an Academic Advisor because...I enjoy working with students to help them succeed in accomplishing their educational goals. It’s rewarding to be a part of their journey and seeing them grow and succeed.

Jennifer AlanizAcademic Recovery

I became an Academic Advisor because…I genuinely love the pace and dynamic changesof this university! I also enjoy partnering with students so they can make informed decisions, create the right goals, and become successful.

National ScholarshipsOpportunities for Success

Texas A&M-Kingsville offers a variety of scholar-ships for students pursuing a higher level of educa-tion. Currently, the following national scholarships are available for student applicants:

Study Abroad ▶ Gates Cambridge Scholarship ▶ The George J. Mitchell Scholarship ▶ Marshall Scholarship ▶ The Rhodes Scholarship

International Study And Language Grants ▶ Boren Scholarships ▶ Fulbright Scholar Program ▶ Schwarzman Scholars ▶ The Rhodes Scholarship

Domestic Scholarships ▶ Barry Goldwater Scholarship ▶ Truman Scholarship Foundation ▶ The UDALL Scholarship

Academic Career Literacy

Pre-Health Organizations

The organizations for Pre-Health Sciences provide support for students planning to join the medical field. The following are highly recommended for pre-health student majors and will be accepting ap-plicants for the fall semester.

Pre-Health Sciences

▶ Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED)

▶ America Medical Student Association (AMSA) ▶ Pre-Pharmacy Association (PPA) ▶ Society for the Advancement of Chicanos & Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) ▶ Student Association for Pre-Health Professions (SAPP)

▶ TAMUK Pre-Dental Society

AED is the National Health Preprofessional Hon-or Society dedicated to the pursuit and recognition of excellence in the preprofessional healthcare scholarship. Its members work towards academic achievement, scholarship opportunities in the med-ical field and community service opportunities.

Center for Student SuccessContact Information

▶ Websitewww.tamuk.edu/studentsuccess/

▶ Contact Phone(361) 593-3290

▶ University Address700 University Blvd., Kingsville TX 78363

▶ Email Contactnancy.kingsanders@tamuk.edu

Monthly News

▷ Course Redesign Contest Beginning in the spring semester of 2016, the teaching staff at TAMUK was encouraged to participate in a course re-design contest. By redesigning their courses with the I-CARE Grant, teachers give their students the opportunity to participate in undergraduate research programs, apply for scholarships, and have interactive student learning activities. The faculty members below are the winners of the Course Redesign Contest who will integrate their new curriculum starting this fall semester. Winners: Dr. Joseph Jones, MUSI 2306 Dr. Richard Miller, PSYC 3301 Dr. Chang Sung, BIOL 3402

▷ CRLA’s International Mentor Training Program Certification (IMTPC) The GPS Mentoring Department is now certified by CRLA’s International Mentor Training Program Certification (IMTPC) at Level I/Certified, Level II/Advanced, and Level III/Master. This program will allow mentors to have a better understanding of stu-dents from diverse backgrounds, provide in-depth support, and skills to support incoming freshman.

▷ 101 Things To Do Before You Graduate By Patricia Hudak & Jullien Gordon This year’s common read is titled 101 Things To Do Before You Graduate. It is divided up into chapters that give students a list of goals that they can achieve before college graduation. The goals and objectives provide a strong support system to the textbook from students’ UNIV 1101 course. The book promotes service learning opportunities such as work study, volunteering, and internships, all of which are essential to student success. This will be the first year the selected book is not a novel, but it is designed to be a supplemental aid for students throughout their academic career.

▷ Early College Education Dual enrollment courses provide high school students, grades 9 through 12, the opportunity to get a head start on their college education. Students in dual enrollment courses receive credits for their high school degree while also obtaining college cred-it hours. These credits may be transferred to the student’s uni-versity of choice upon high school graduation. Currently, Tex-as A&M-Kingsville offers dual enrolment courses to 964 high school students from 18 different high schools. The success rate of these students is considerably high at 90 percent.

AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2016

This year's Common Read "101 Things To Do Before You Graduate" is paired with the UNIV 1101 course text book and daily planner. The book is co-written by mo-tivational speaker Jullien Gordon.

Dr. Joseph Jones Dr. Richard Miller Dr. Chang Sung

Course Redesign Winners

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Fostering Student Success ▶

Professional Development ▶

National

Scholarships ▶

RECOGNITIONSPOTLIGHT

FALL EVENTS

Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 2

Preview

TutoringMissionTo supply students with the necessary knowledge to be successful in their academic field of study with centralized academic support resources. The PACC offers a variety of tutoring sessions and Supplemental Instruction (SI) tutoring that focus on different content and learning/study skills strategies.

Pre-Health Science Coordinator Eric Winterbottom, Student Worker, and Academic Advisors Javier Men-doza, Jose Mendoza, and Alfonso Ramos.

Student workers at Freshman Convocation

Departments of the Center of Student Success

AVIDAdvancement Via Individual Determination

Title V I-CARE Grant

Advising

GPS MentoringMissionTo assist all students transitioning into Texas A&M-Kingsville through the guidance and support of the Graduation Pathway Success Center (GPS) stu-dent mentors. All GPS mentors receive training, are committed to doing their job, empower students, offer students campus resources and connections, and pro-vide academic, career planning and personal guidance.

Monthly News▶ CRLA’s International Mentor Training Program Certification (IMTPC)

First-Year SeminarMissionTo help students become academically pre-pared, goal oriented, and active members of their university and community. UNIV 1101, is a course designed to enhance student learning strategies, social behaviors, and knowledge of academic resources.

2016 Fall Events▶ Sponsors of the Fall Events

MissionTo connect all the departments of the Center for Student Success at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, and works towards preparing students for college and global success.

Fall Events▶ Sponsors of the Fall Events

MissionTo offer students the opportunity to partici-pate in undergraduate research, provide assis-tance with National Scholarship applications, offer academic career guidance and access to new resource sites.

2016 Fall Events▶ Sponsors of the Fall Events

Monthly News▶ Course Redesign Contest

MissionTo provide a constant source of academic support, campus knowledge, and course plan-ning to all Texas A&M-Kingsville students.

Recognition Spotlight▶ New Advising Staff

MissionTo help students make important life-chang-ing decisions regarding their careers and majors, and to explore and assist with under-graduate research, personal statements, and National Scholarships.

Recognition Spotlight▶ National Scholarships

Pre-Health SciencesMissionTo provide support and guidance to students planning to enter the medical, dental, and phar-maceutical field. Students receive assistance in the areas of pre-health, pre-medical, pre-den-tal, and pre-pharmacy, and with applications to medical school.

Recognition Spotlight ▶ Pre-Health Organizations

Common ReadMissionTo give all incoming students access to the yearly Common Read, which is aimed at pro-moting reading skills, a reading environment, and community building among students on campus. Monthly News▶ 101 Things To Do Before You Graduate

Dual EnrollmentMissionTo help high school students bridge the gap between secondary and post-secondary edu-cation by providing them with college level courses.

Monthly News▶ Early College Education

ChessMissionTo work with the Academic Recovery Program and promote higher critical thinking through the educational game of chess.

Recognition Spotlight▶ Chess Player of the Month

Academic RecoveryMissionTo enforce student success through the com-bined efforts of the administration, staff, professors, and students. It seeks to assist students who are on scholastic probation or enforced withdrawal and who are willing to continue their academic education.

Academic Career Literacy

Assistant Director, Dr. Jeanine Birdwell, and Interim Director, Christina Rodriguez-Gonzales, for the Mento-ring and Tutoring Centers.

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MissionTo connect all the departments of the Center for Students Success to the Tex-as A&M-Kingsville academic staff and students via online tools and support..