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NEWS RELEASES AUGUST '05
UW Colleges selected in national competition to help new students’ transition to college
August 4, 2005
The University of Wisconsin Colleges, which includes UW-Marinette, has been selected to participate in the “Foundations of Excellence in the First College Year” project after a national competition.
The UW Colleges was selected in a competitive application process from a pool of 87 two-year institutions. Criteria for selection included a strong campus commitment to students and readiness to engage in evaluation and improvement. The UW Colleges is one of only 10 “Founding Institutions” selected to be part of the project.
Research has long indicated that new college students who successfully make the transition into college during their first year of college are much more likely to succeed. The Foundations of Excellence project is designed to help campuses improve the first year experience for new students even more.
UW-Marinette currently has a program in place called “Engaging Students in the First Year” to help new students successfully make the transition to college. The current program includes a First-Year Seminar, "Intro to College," which is offered to new students and includes time management, test taking, and study skills.
“This type of seminar helps students learn what is expected of them in college and it also connects students with their classmates during their first days on campus,” said Cindy Bailey, assistant campus dean for student services.
“We understand freshman year can be challenging and we already have some strong programs in place to help our students do well,” said Bailey. “But we are looking forward to being part of this national project and learning new ways to make that critical first year even more successful.”
Increased attention on improving new student experiences will benefit students by helping them meet their educational goals and will benefit institutions by helping them retain students through graduation. As part of the project, the 10 selected institutions will measure their effectiveness in recruiting, admitting, orienting, supporting, advising, and teaching new students. They will then be able to make improvements that will increase student learning, success, and persistence to graduation. The resulting blueprint will represent the first nationally-integrated examination of the many elements that get students off to the right start.
Students interested in enrolling for fall 2005 at UW-Marinette are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. For more information, call 715-735-4301 or visit www.marinette.uwc.edu.
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