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The Saluki First Year program is having a strong freshman year, administrators say.
Saluki First Year started its initiative this semester to help new students become familiar with university life by helping them get connected on campus and succeed in their academic and social lives.
Mark Amos, academic director, said the program wouldn’t have been able to function this early without the strong support of Chancellor Sam Goldman and other faculty and staff.
Two years of planning precede the program before it is started. The first year is a self-study to determine the needs of the program, and the second year is to plan on how to fulfill those needs, Amos said.
The self-study for Saluki First Year was performed last year, he said.
“The chancellor was so very excited about the potential for the university that we sort of got rid of that second year and launched it this year,” Amos said. “And we’re planning the full rollout for next year.”
Supplemental Instruction allows select students to help other students in peer-assisted study sessions for many University Core Curriculum courses. Saluki First Year is in the process of getting more students to help as supplemental instructors, Amos said.
“I think we’ve succeeded at everything we’re doing,” he said.
Julie Payne-Kirchmeier, student affairs director, said Saluki First Year has succeeded so far because of the support of the campus.
“This is a campus-wide program, truly a campus-wide effort,” Kirchmeier said. “Not just four or five people in a room saying, ‘this would be a good idea.’”
Kirchmeier said an important part of the program is getting students connected.
The first week the program started, a nontraditional student called and said he wanted to find more nontraditional students like himself, Kirchmeier said.
She said she was able to guide the student to the Student Development office so he could talk to faculty and staff to get connected with other students.
“We put the right pieces together, and people just run with it,” Kirchmeier said.
She said she encourages students, even if they are not freshmen, to call or e-mail the Saluki First Year office if they have any questions.
Mike Heer, a freshman from Gurnee studying computer science, said he never knew what the program was until he became a fan of it on Facebook.
“I constantly look there to see what’s going on around campus,” Heer said. “I haven’t really gone out and done a lot of things, but if I were to it would be a good help.”
Heer and his girlfriend Shelby Reinhardt said the Web site helped both of them become familiar with Blackboard, which can create difficulties for students.
Reinhardt, a freshman from Gurnee studying fashion merchandising, said she also likes learning about events on campus and the Facebook page helped her pick Homecoming events to attend.
The program didn’t exactly help her prepare for college life, she said. Reinhardt said her mother’s friend helped introduce her to the university.
“For students who don’t have anyone or don’t know anyone and need help adjusting, it’s helpful,” Reinhardt said.
Zac Bird, a freshman from Princeton studying forestry, said he didn’t find the program useful for his first year at college.
“
I don’t feel like I needed extra help,” Bird said. “I think the biggest thing is joining a group when you get down here.”
Bird said he got connected on campus because he joined the rugby team and met a lot of people because he lives in the dorms.
Kirchmeier said as long as students feel at home at SIUC, it does not matter if they use the Saluki First Year program.
“If they never know who we are, I don’t care about that,” she said. “Just as long as they’re successful.”
If students would like to contact Saluki First Year, call 453-1828 or e-mail at firstyr@siu.edu.
Erin Holcomb can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 255.
