first-year family newsletter
DESCRIPTION
Fall 2012 family newsletter for family and parents of first-year studentsTRANSCRIPT
Purdue Promise
Spring 2013
Registration Dates
Priority Groups 10/23-10/27 , 12pm
Sophomores
(based on earned credit hours)
11/12-11/17, 12pm
Current First-Year Students
11/19-11/21 11/26-11/27
For more information visit:
www.purdue.edu/registrar/Reg_Main_Pg/Spring13_Reg_FAQs.pd
f
Dates and times are subject to
change.
Inside this issue:
Purdue Promise Kick
Off
2
The Purdue Promise
Pledge
2
Purdue Promise Ice
Cream Social
2
Connection Corner:
Overcoming First
Semester Challenges
3
Student Spotlight 4
Volume 1, Issue 1 Fall 2012
Welcome to the first issue of
Purdue Promise Family!
Our hope for this newsletter is to
not only connect you to what the Pur-due Promise program is doing but also to your student! Here you can learn about the experiences that your stu-
dent is having through the
Purdue Promise program, be informed of what Purdue Promise is about, and have an outlet to be a part of our Pur-due Promise family! We hope to build and maintain these connections throughout your student’s collegiate career. Welcome, and we’re excited that you’re a part of our Pur-
due Promise family!
~ The Purdue Promise Staff
Premier Issue!
Students who are Purdue Promise*
-Must maintain at least satisfacto-ry academic progress (SAP) based on number of credit hours earned. Visit www.purdue.edu/dfa/policies/SAPPolicy.pdf
for more information. We strongly recommend students strive to ex-ceed this requirement. In their soph-omore year, students will need to have a 2.25 cumulative GPA.
-Required to attend at least 1 Purdue Promise social per semes-ter.
-Submit the FAFSA on time.
-Be a part of a Learning Communi-ty during their first semester.
Students who are Emerging Urban Leaders*
-Must Maintain a 2.75 GPA or better.
-Required to attend at least 1 Purdue Promise Social per Semester.
-Submit the FAFSA on time.
-Be a part of a Learning Community during their first semester.
*Scholarship requirements change each year
First-Year Scholarship Requirements
We’re going green and
saving trees!
This will be our only paper mailing of the family
newsletter.
Sign up for our electronic newsletter at:
purdue.qualtrics.com/SE
Purdue Promise Family Page 2
Purdue Promise Kick-off
Ice Cream Social
On Friday, August 17th
Purdue Promise held its
annual Kick-off to wel-
come new students to the
program.
At the start of the pro-
gram students were re-
minded of their scholar-
ship requirements and
met the new Purdue
Promise staff and student
leaders. As a closing cer-
emony, students took the
Purdue Promise pledge
and received tassels to
serve as a reminder of
their ultimate goal:
Graduation.
After the main ceremo-
ny, students broke up
into smaller groups so
they could connect with
other students, meet
their mentor, and learn
more about their GS
197 Peer Facilitator.
All first-year students
take GS 197 to learn
about college success
skills and resources.
It has been a Purdue Promise tradition to hold an ice cream social the
week that class starts to kick off the new academic year, so it was no co-
incidence when more than 140 first-year students, upperclassmen, and
student leaders turned out for the event on Wednesday, August 22nd . At
this event students were strongly encouraged to meet the Purdue Promise
staff, student leaders, as well as their fellow peers and socialize while
they took a relaxing ice cream break during the middle of the first aca-
demic week. The ice cream social offered free vanilla ice cream, popsi-
cles, root beer floats, music, and many group activities such as catch
phrase, jenga, and lots of opportunities to meet new people, forge new
ties, and help the student community grow closer as a whole.
I have support in
friends, loved
ones, and the
Purdue Promise
Staff.
The Purdue Promise Pledge
Purdue Promise
Is a promise to myself,
My education, and my fu-ture. I have worked hard to get this far and will contin-ue to strive toward earning
my Purdue degree.
I have support in friends,
loved ones, and the Purdue
Promise Staff.
This week I have started
my journey at Purdue.
I will finish by walking across the stage with my
diploma in hand.
This is my promise.
Students having a great time socializing and enjoying
ice cream
Page 3 Volume 1, Issue 1
C nnection C rner Adapted from http://www.collegeparents.org
Overcoming First Semester Challenges As your college student settles in for his/her first year of college, you know that there will be challenges ahead – both for him/her and for you. This is a year of transition for everyone. The challenges facing your student will exist in many areas, and you may feel that you will be unable to help him/her through them if you are not there. While the GS 197 course all Purdue Promise students take in their first year is designed to help them deal with common transi-tional issues, families also provide an important and necessary support system. We’ll consider five major areas in which many college students encounter challenges during their first semester transition to college. Families can consider how they can best help their student gain mastery and independence in these areas. Academic Challenges
This challenge is anticipated by many, but not all, entering college students. Most students understand that college will be different – and harder – than high school, but many do not realize exactly what those differences will be. College is significantly different from high school. You can help your student by asking how classes are going and encouraging her to build connections with her professors. Ask your student what they are learning and the kinds of assignments they will have to do for each class to help him/her gain a sense of the workload for each course. Some of the students who have the most academic difficulty are those students who are taken off guard by how much work they will have to do.
Social Challenges Your college student enters a new social world as he enters college. He begins his college career with a clean slate and will need to recreate his social world. He will need to make new friends, negotiate life with a roommate, and once again be at the bottom of the school hierarchy as an entering first-year student. Your student will likely feel social pressure to make friends, join groups (official or unofficial), find forms of entertainment, and make decisions about alcohol, drugs, sex, and other social activities. Helping your student anticipate the changes and decisions he will face will help him think carefully about what is important to him. Challenges Of Responsibility
Your college student will be held accountable for herself and her actions in college. She is more likely to be expected to be responsi-ble than she may have been in high school. Students are responsible for their choices and their actions. They are responsible for mak-ing decisions about studying, eating, socializing, finances, health, and managing their time. It may be a new experience for your stu-dent to be held accountable and not be able to turn to parents to fend for her. You will still be an important source of support and advice to your student, but she will need to assume ultimate responsibility for herself and her actions. Time Management Challenges One of the biggest keys to success in college is time management. College students spend much less time in class and are expected to do more coursework outside of the classroom. Coursework is often given in larger chunks rather than smaller daily assignments. Stu-dents spend less time in structured activities than they did in high school. Talk with your student about how he will keep track of his obligations and assignments, how to break large assignments into meaningful pieces, how to say “no” to activities when he needs to study or sleep. Help him find a good planner or calendar and use it to keep track of assignments, deadlines, and appointments. The Challenge of Balance Perhaps by adding up all of the other challenges which first-year students face, we realize that success during the first year (or any other year) of college relies on achieving a sense of balance. Help your student realize that she will constantly be juggling. She will need to be flexible. She will need to be aware. She must balance her academics with his social life, her need for sleep with her need for study and/or fun, her desires and his budget, her desire for independence with her need for the security of home, her freedom and her responsibility. As college parents, it is easy to feel overwhelmed as we consider the challenges that our students will be facing during their first year of transition. It is important that we arm our students with skills and a positive attitude so that they will be able to overcome challeng-es as they anticipate them and make some thoughtful decisions. The path may not be easy; there will be rocky times throughout the first year, but we can be especially proud of our students as they move forward to face these challenges.
Texting is an easy way to stay
in touch with your student.
SSTUDENTTUDENT SSPOTLIGHTPOTLIGHT
What is your favorite Purdue Memory?
The Purdue vs. Ohio State Football game where we were expected to lose badly, but came out with a
huge upset.
Name someone who has had an impact on your life.
Someone who has had a huge impact on my life is my little sister, who has cerebral palsy. She taught me
to never give up. She is just like any other kid, but physically she struggles, but she never lets her disability
get in the way of picking up new skills and functioning like anyone else.
What would you do if you were given a chance to make a difference in the community?
Improve off-campus housing with insulation by retrofitting homes to be more energy efficient.
Help market and advertise for local schools, good causes, and organizations.
Any tips for first year students?
Take all the help and advice you can get from people who are helping you, and take your classes serious-
ly, because the learning curve between high school and college is very different. The professors are pretty
serious here.
What is one thing you wished you had known coming into college?
I wished I would have known the actual difference between high school and college courses, it’s a big
learning curve, like going from the minor leagues to the major leagues. I was surprised at how little I
learned in high school and how much I have learned during my time here at college.
NAME: JASON KIENZLE HOMETOWN: CALUMET TOWNSHIP, INDIANA YEAR: SENIOR MAJOR: COMPUTER GRAPHICS TECHNOLOGY
400 Centennial Mall Drive
ENAD 212
West Lafayette, IN 47907-2034
Phone: 765-494-9328
Fax: 765-496-1373
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.purdue.edu/sats