THE STUDENT HELP CENTER
Submitted by Jessica Baer, Student Help Center
A new campus-wide undergraduate retention effort is underway at Ohio University. The Student Help Center, now open in the new Baker University Center, will be assisting students in achieving their educational and personal goals by serving as a centralized and comprehensive source of information, referral, and walk-in assistance.
The Student Help Center, located on the fourth floor of Baker University Center, room 419, launched a unique retention initiative over winter break. Graduate students and staff called first-year students placed on academic probation after their first quarter at Ohio University. This effort reached students during their winter break to counsel them on services at Ohio University, as well as to conduct academic advising over the phone. It helped students consider new options for success, even before they returned for winter quarter classes.
Ongoing retention initiatives through the Student Help Center include general academic advising, academic skill advising, Academic Success Workshops, Dining Hall outreach, at-risk student identification and support, exit interview with withdrawing undergraduate students, and supporting the assessment of retention efforts. New initiatives include: Academic Early Alert – a web enabled system for identifying students experiencing academic difficulty, Attendance Check-up – a program to identify and contact first-year students showing a break in attendance in large lecture sections, and after hours psychological counseling.
