DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS Office of Excellence and Multicultural Student Success
Office Mission The mission of the Office of Excellence and Multicultural Student Success is to create a campus environment for students of various cultures and diverse backgrounds and provide opportunities and avenues to college success for underrepresented students beginning in the eighth grade and continuing on through college graduation and beyond.
Office Mission Through its programs and services, the Office of Excellence and Multicultural Student Success (OEMSS) will enhance the recruitment and retention efforts of the Division of Student Affairs and explore the indigenous roots of African American, Asian American, Latino American, Native American, Appalachian American (Low Income Caucasian), and LGBTQA, students.
The Office of Excellence & Multicultural Student Success The Office of Excellence and Multicultural Student Success is a hub of academic, retention, enrichment, and recruitment programs and services that begin reaching students in the 7th grade and continue throughout high school and through college graduation. These programs include: TOLEDO EXCEL, TRIO Upward Bound, TRIO Student Support Services, Multicultural Student Success and the Annual Conference for Aspiring Minority Youth. The services are targeted towards students who are underrepresented in higher education, including African- American, Hispanic-Americans, LGBTQ students, Asian- Americans, Arab-Americans, and Appalachian-Americans.
Purpose To recruit achievement-oriented multicultural/underrepresented students and decrease the disparity of students who enter and graduate from The University of Toledo; To initiate a universal student development program for multicultural/underrepresented students from recruitment to graduation;
Purpose To lead a viable retention program for underrepresented students at The University of Toledo To write, administer and direct proposals and grants to benefit current and prospective students; To serve as the coordinating office for all university programs dealing with students underrepresented in higher education;
Purpose To involve students in every aspect of the university and create meaningful interaction with alumni and community organizations
Vision The Office of Excellence and Multicultural Student Success (OEMSS) will become a national model of excellence over the next five years, increasing retention of the students it serves; equipping, enhancing, and expanding their college experience; and making The University of Toledo a college of choice for academically prepared, high achieving students with similar backgrounds.
Impact Substantial benefits to the institution are implied as a direct outcome of utilizing federal programs on UT s campus. The university increases its visibility locally as well as nationally thus establishing a track record of commitment to equal educational opportunity. The university also accrues funds used to support (partially or totally) supplemental underrepresented recruitment/retention activities. Additionally, collaboration with UT alumni, Toledo community leaders and local small businesses increase the town-grown relationships between the university and its stakeholders.
What is TOLEDO EXCEL? A scholarship incentive program designed to prepare underrepresented students for college success through pre-college academic, cultural, and civic activities. Program Mission: to address underrepresentation and retention of local students in higher education by developing their academic preparedness and competencies before and during college, beginning in the 8 th grade.
The EXCEL Scholarship The TOLEDO EXCEL Scholarship covers the cost of tuition, fees, and a book allowance for a full-time student attending the University of Toledo.
Recruitment Each year TOLEDO EXCEL recruits fifty high-achieving, underrepresented 8 th grade students in the metropolitan Toledo area. Who is eligible? Any 8 th grade student attending school in the city of Toledo who has at least a 3.0 GPA, scores at or above grade level on their standardized test scores and is a member of an underrepresented group.
Academic Requirements For students to be eligible for the TOLEDO EXCEL Scholarship, they must maintain a cumulative Grade Point Average of at least 3.0 or better. Students must meet EXCEL Curriculum requirements and High School equivalents. Participate in at least 85% of activities. Complete 25 hours per academic year of community service. Over 6,000 hours are completed yearly. Students must receive at least a 21 ACT composite score.
EXCEL Students in Action
Academic Year Programming Student/Parent Meetings Saturday School Academic Advising Tutoring Career Development Campus Visits Admissions and Financial Aid Workshops Cultural Events and Opportunities Annual Conference for Students, Parents, and Educators
Annual Graduation and Induction Ceremony To date, there are more than 1,200 students enrolled in the EXCEL pipeline. Of Groups I through XX 846 students, 96% have enrolled in college; 74% have enrolled at UT; 84% of EXCEL scholars are college graduates or matriculating towards college graduation. TOLEDO EXCEL summer programming begins with the annual Graduation and Induction ceremony held on UT s main campus to welcome new inductees and recognize our high school graduates.
Annual Graduation and Induction Ceremony
Summer Programming Intensive Summer Institutes Summer Institute I: Basics Plus+ Summer Institute II: Leadership and Careers Summer Institute III: Civil Rights/Human Rights Summer Institute IV: Global Diversity Summer Institute V: Bridging the Gap from High School to College
Summer Programming
Educational Opportunities Civil Rights Research Study
Educational Opportunities GLOBAL DIVERSITY STUDY
The University of Toledo Upward Bound Program
What Is Upward Bound? The Higher Education Act of 1965 initiated federal funding for TRIO Programs. TRIO Programs include: 1. Upward Bound Classic Upward Bound Upward Bound Math Science Veterans Upward Bound 2. Talent Search 3. Student Support Services 4. Education Opportunity Centers 5. Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate 6. TRIO Staff Training
What Is Upward Bound? Upward Bound is an academic pre-college program funded by a grant from the US Department of Education. We have been successfully funded at UT without lapse since 1967. There are more than 800 UB programs across the nation.
The Purpose of Upward Bound To prepare and motivate low income high school and/or first generation college students to attend institutions of higher learning; and to be successful at the college or university of their choice.
Program Services Tutoring, instruction & academic enrichment classes. Six-week Summer Residential Program. Personal and career advising. Job search strategies and assistance. FAFSA, college application & registration assistance. Personal, academic and professional development workshops. College visits. Participation in conferences, seminars, etc. High school credit. Student stipends. Assistance locating scholarships, special program support, and mentoring, etc.
Upward Bound Admits Students of any... Race Color Gender Religion Nationality, and/or Ethnic origin whose family is Less than 150% of the poverty level, and/or Whose custodial parent(s) have not obtained a four-year bachelor degree; or have a documented disability.
Program Stats: Since 2001, 231 participants have gone on to college. Upward Bound s degree completion rate thus far is 40% for those who began college six or more years ago. 77% of Upward Bounders completed BA/BS programs while the remaining 22% completed AAB degrees.
What is TRiO SSS? We are a Federally funded program designed to assist students who fall into one or more of three categories: First generation college students Low-Income students Students with disabilities Students from these three categories are traditionally less likely to remain enrolled in postsecondary education to graduation
Our Vision The vision and mission of TRiO Student Support Services is to increase retention and graduation rates for UT students, who are defined as disadvantaged by the HEA of 1965 and have sufficient academic need to require services to facilitate their process of transition from one level of education to the next
How do we help? TRiO SSS is a retention program which offers: Workshops designed to assist our students with personal finances, Financial Aid, study skills, and other aspects of college and professional life Tutoring and advising services Work study opportunities for qualifying students And a grant-in-aid program for students with student loans
Who Are We? We are staffed by Education Professionals, Graduate Assistants, Student Mentors, and Tutor Mentors Who provide advising, mentoring, and tutoring services Our GA s and student employees come from the same student populations that we serve
Selection of Students Annually TRiO SSS serves 160 students who are screened to determine academic need for the program Each student is ranked on a 50 point scale that considers ACT score, HS and transfer GPAs, current GPA, enrollment, academic standing, and overall potential for post-secondary success Since 2010 TRiO SSS has targeted Blue and Gold Scholars In 2012 we began working with Multicultural Leadership and Service Living Learning Community students
Academic Services TRiO SSS advisors and student mentors assist students in several ways to: Transition from high school to college Determine what major or program best fits their goals Learn to self-assess and modify their study habits, goals, and abilities Understand University of Toledo policies and procedures Understand Financial Aid and loan repayment Utilize support resources such as the LEC, Writing Center and inhouse tutoring Tutor Mentors receive training by the LEC and the Educational Specialist to become skilled in working with students with a variety of skills, abilities and adaptive needs.
The TRiO SSS Grant The TRiO SSS Grant is given to qualifying TRiO students who have taken Student Loans The students are recommending by the Advising staff and screened based on SAP, enrollment hours and amount of loan debt Annually, students can be awarded $555 to $1000
Assess and Improve Every year we make the program better Comments from students on the 2010-2011 evaluations included: TRIO has been very helpful to students TRIO is amazing! Helped me academically and personally The program was very helpful Great program I love TRIO
Improvement Through Evaluations TRiO SSS makes improvements annually based on student feedback. This process has resulted in: 2010 Upgrades to the TRiO SSS office computer lab The addition of adaptive technology to our tutoring resources 2011 The addition of a network printer to the TRiO SSS computer lab Training for all TRiO SSS student mentors and tutor mentors to equip them to assist TRiO SSS students with basic study skills
Indicators of our success Of new students in 2005, 53% graduated within 6 years of enrolling in the TRiO SSS program Of the 52 students classified as seniors in 2010-2011, 32 completed their degrees and graduated (61.5%) Since 2001, 145 TRiO SSS participants have graduated with a four-year degree. Of those more than 66% did so within five years of first enrollment at UT
Indicators of our success 87.5% of freshmen from the 2010 cohort persisted to their second semester 41.6% earned sophomore status 75.1% of TRiO SSS students have persisted in their enrollment 87.6% of TRiO SSS students are in good academic standing TRiO SSS is meeting its target of a 35% graduation rate within six years of initial enrollment
QUESTIONS????????