First-Year Experience:  Building a Foundation for Academic Success

From making new friends to unraveling the web of college services, freshman year can be a stressful time for even the most prepared college student. But thanks to improved First-Year Experience (FYE) programs, Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western Connecticut State Universities are contributing to the academic success of students entering college for the first time.

Southern Connecticut State University’s FYE program is the most dramatically changed among the four CSUS universities. Most current freshmen have participated in the new program, which was specifically designed by a faculty-led subcommittee of the University Curriculum Forum to strengthen academic skills, ease adjustment to college life and provide faculty mentors.

The revised FYE began last summer, as groups of 250 students participated in two-day orientation sessions. These sessions helped students become familiar with campus rules, programs and procedures. Parent orientation programs were also expanded to include security issues in addition to academic and social aspects of college life.

Students were then slated into one of three course models for the fall semester, including a new model that serves the largest number of students and is taught by faculty members from a range of disciplines. The other two - LINKS and Honors College - have operated at Southern for many years.

The new model begins with an FYE seminar titled “Introduction to Intellectual and Creative Inquiry,” which helps students understand why they are being assigned specific academic work and how they can improve necessary skills.

The students take two additional courses with the same group of about 20 students - an English composition course and a general education course chosen from a range of academic subjects. This three-course cluster is part of the five courses that most full-time freshmen take during their first semester.

“Our seminar is not a study-skills course, but an academic course that centers on the notion of academic inquiry, a competency that all faculty, regardless of their discipline, agree students must master,” said Nicole Henderson, associate professor of English at Southern, academic director of the FYE Program and co-chair of the FYE curriculum committee.

Other students enter the “LINKS” program, which also involves taking three clustered courses, but without the introductory seminar. Each cluster focuses on a theme, such as “economic problems in history,” and “ethics in an age of genocide.” Each of the LINKS clusters includes an English composition course and two other courses in economics, history, math, geography, art or philosophy.

Joining the Honors College is another option for top students. The Honors College includes a series of courses taken over four years - many team taught - which take the place of the all-university required courses.

To ensure that faculty and staff are on the same page, an “FYE Academy for Faculty” was developed.  FYE seminar instructors also act as advisors to students and their cohorts through the entire first year.

Henderson stressed that strong relationships, mentoring and faculty advisors were important to student success. “So we built these relationships right into the center of the curriculum, which is where students need to succeed,” she said.

Eastern Connecticut State University

Eastern’s First-Year Program is designed to give first-time, full-time students a comprehensive introduction to academics and campus life. The program features two innovative approaches, one for each semester of a student’s first year.

It all begins with Eastern’s 2007 SOAR (Summer Orientation, Advising and Registration) program during the summer. All new first-year resident and commuter students are required to attend one of the sessions, marking the start of orientation activities interwoven throughout freshman year.

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Last year, students also took a LASSI (Learning and Study Strategies Inventory) survey, which helps professors recognize how each student learns.

In the fall semester, students sign up for special first-year courses clustered together into unique “Learning Communities.”  In the spring semester, all full-time students enroll in a first-year colloquium (seminar) of their choice. The colloquia are required as an integral part of the liberal arts curriculum and first year program, and explore themes developed from the expertise and interests of the instructor.

Each colloquium consists of 20 students who work closely with a faculty mentor and each other to develop the skills of good scholarship - critical reading and writing, logical thinking, and effective communication.

Central Connecticut State University

CCSU’s FYE is highlighted by a full-day orientation program providing incoming students and their parents with a preview of college life. The program familiarizes students with the university environment and helps them identify support networks to fulfill academic and social needs.

Students can tour the campus, buy course textbooks, visit the Student Center, and meet with professors. A special session is also offered to family members who attend orientation. Here, parents and family members can get tips on transition issues and meet faculty and staff.

For this academic year, a new element was added to the orientation. To improve students understanding of personal financial management, CCSU and the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants (CSCPA) collaborated to offer a workshop on financial literacy.  The session addressed issues including budgeting, paying bills, credit card debt, and student loans, and was very well received by students.

Western Connecticut State University

Western’s FYE program offers a two-part freshmen orientation during one week in June, where students meet faculty, advisors and deans, as parents attend workshops.

Freshmen arrive in September for welcome week and during orientation they learn about time management, the transition from high school to college and navigating the campus.

Walter Bernstein, vice president of Student Affairs, said freshman year is the first time that many students have lived away from home, so issues like nutrition management, getting rest, and making good decisions are discussed.

Freshmen can then select a cluster of three FYE courses such as introduction to psychology or sociology. Faculty are also encouraged to include content in their courses that will assist freshmen.

“FYE must weave in three elements - critical thinking, information literacy, and writing skills. In addition to that, students must get involved in extra-curricular activities and understand how to work in groups,” said Bernstein.

Across CSUS, first-year experience programs continue to evolve, responding to the needs of students at each university.  By helping students begin their academic careers on a solid footing, FYE programs are the first step in a memorable college experience.