SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — SUNY Sullivan trumpeted its newly established Advancing Success in Associate Pathways (ASAP) program and that program’s first cohort at a media event and LinkedIn workshop held on Monday, October 26. 

SUNY Sullivan joined the ASAP program, which originated in the CUNY system before being adapted into a statewide offering, this past June, with its first cohort starting in the fall semester. Now, three months into the fall semester, the college is celebrating the program and the 102 students enrolled in it as the semester draws to its midpoint.  

“We were lucky enough to be invited by SUNY System to join the second round of institutions in this second cohort. It is a really important program,” SUNY Sullivan Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs Carissa Massey said. “It allows us to provide individualized support to our students while providing direct resource support, both monetary and also career and persistence training to our students.”

Massey said that the ASAP program aligns with the core mission of SUNY Sullivan and several other initiatives the college is pursuing to further student success.

“The state is committed to recognizing and taking responsibility for all of the ways in which student success is stopped, prohibited [and] slowed by things that happen outside of the classroom. We call those learning interferences and barriers. In our work as a community at SUNY Sullivan, we have centered student success in our mission as an institution,” Massey said. 

“At the heart of all of this is something that’s a little bit philosophical, and that is the belief that all of our students, all of the people who make up our community here, have intrinsic worth,” she added. “That is the beginning point for us.”

Joining the event to represent the SUNY system was SUNY Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Success and Transformational Initiatives Casey O’Brien. O’Brien commended the team at SUNY Sullivan, saying that they are “giving students the tools that they need to build a bright and promising future.”

“I just want to say how excited I am to not just be here individually, but to also welcome SUNY Sullivan as now one of 10 new campuses this year,” O’Brien said. “I just want to congratulate the team here at SUNY Sullivan for getting this off the ground.”

O’Brien also gave some background on the program, saying that the program has seen great success in its nearly 20 years since it started in the CUNY system. O’Brien also emphasized the program’s student focus.

“In study after study, very rigorous studies. It’s shown that retention and graduation for students in the program is dramatically increased compared with those who are not,” O’Brien said. “To the students, those here today, and I would also say to those across the state in this program, you really are the beating heart of it. It’s why I come to work every day, and I know it’s why the folks in this room who work for SUNY Sullivan’s administration come to work every day.”

Hannah Warner, ASAP advisor and assistant dean and director of student success programs, spoke on the program and the resources offered to students enrolled. These resources include a textbook voucher, a monthly stipend and a cost-of-attendance award of $400 each semester. The program also offers one-on-one advising as well as career readiness workshops, such as the LinkedIn workshop.

“Those kinds of accessible resources are very important to help students not only overcome the financial aspect, but the program really is about helping students overcome whatever barriers that they might be experiencing as a brand new college student who might not have the support,” Warner said. “We’re really here to help establish that extra support and to give them a community while they’re here.”

Stacey Johnson, dean of student support services, agreed with Warner and expanded on that idea. “We want to make sure that our students come in, that they feel known, connected, supported, and prepared,” Johnshon said. “Our support services are wrap-around, and we try to meet the students where they are and make sure that they have the best outcomes possible.”

Johnson also emphasized the advising angle, saying that these relationships are foundational for student success.  “It’s really those relationships and the students making sure that they have that one person or those two people on campus that they can get to and talk to and feel comfortable with, and help them guide them to the next step,” Johnson said.

What the students think

Students also were present to give their insights on the program and how it has impacted their college experience. Michael Granger, a green-building technology student and a non-traditional student, said that he uses the program’s advisors for help adjusting to school, including asking ASAP advisor Cindy Granados for technology assistance.

“As an adult student, I found it very helpful. I hadn’t been in school since 1994, so a lot has changed,” Granger said. “I had to turn a paper in, and I had to find Cindy and find out how to do a Google Doc.” 

Granger also said that the program offered him a social space where he could get to know his fellow classmates.

“I’m a little bit older than most students, so it’s nice to have a place where I can kind of meet the other students and get to know them too, so I don’t feel so awkward and out of place myself,” he said.

Granger added that he was originally interested in the program for the financial assistance aspect, but has also found great use of the advising and the other benefits.

Noah Steinhilber, a psychology student, said that he also has enjoyed the program so far. 

“ASAP’s been great so far. I love the ASAP room. It gives me a great spot to do my work and be able to focus on it in a quiet area,” Steinhilber said. “Everybody’s been so nice and helpful.”