Courtney Tsumoto Academic Advisor (Football & Cheer) Katie Tuisalo’o Graduate Assistant (Football) University of Hawaii Mānoa Student-Athlete Academic Services (SAAS) Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Undergraduate Education (OVCUE)

Veterans & GI Bill No Child Left Behind Gear Up AVID Minorities Disability Non-Traditional Transfer Students Student-Athletes

●565 Student-Athletes ●21 Division I Sports ●Academic Advisors o Program Development:  SAAS Peer Mentoring Program  Ikaika Program (academically at-risk students)  Tutorial Program

●In 2005, UH Football lost 5 scholarships Then (2005) Now (2014) APR score: 898 Semester GPA: 2.34 APR score: 962 Semester GPA: 2.88

Developmental Challenges

First Generation College StudentsReceived Academic Assistance

Miles From Home First Generation Special Circumstances Student #1 35Yes Familial constraints require him to commute to and from school; allocates portions of his scholarship toward family expenses; just diagnosed with a learning disability Student #2 4082Yes Familial duties include two children under age two; homesickness and decreased contact due to time zones; special admittance to University Student #3 2758No Entered the military workforce post high school; high performing; married with one child Student #4 4195Yes International student; extreme cultural shock and freedom; low personal motivation; English is second language; Obligated to send majority of scholarship to family

Bandura (1991) ●Social Cognitive Theory o human behavior is purposive, regulated by forethought Tinto (1999) ●Learning Communities o social support strengthen academic self-efficacy and persistence Vygotsky (1978) ●Zone of Proximal Development o instructional adaptivity, including scaffolding

●Students placed into groups “pods”. ●Four interacting pieces to the puzzle. ○Advisor and GA: work closely together to strategize. ○GAs mobilize Group Leaders ○Group Leaders work with their students (pods). ●Group leaders chosen for their diverse academic backgrounds to provide wide- range of support (resources) ●Group Leaders assigned to pod. ●Mentor students individually & coordinate group study sessions.

Goal: Utilize skillsets of all students Benefits: social support, college skill development, positive interactions ●Strong students lead study groups supported by pod group leader. ●Demonstration of study skills used by the student leaders (modeling). ●Student leaders must understand material and learn how to break it down for others.

Goal: Develop learning communities and partnerships within pods as well as leadership qualities. Benefits: Social support, college skill development, positive interactions ●Group discussion & review of class content. Alternate student leader. ●Peer mentor: facilitate note taking strategies and higher level thinking processes ●Develop and reinforce rewriting of notes

Goal: Encourage positive interactions with faculty. Benefits: Put professional communication skills into practice, connects with the university. ●Students schedule appointments with professors o Organize and talk through questions they have prior to meeting ●Debriefing sessions in study hall o What went well/wrong? o Will students meet with other professors?

Peer Mentors focus on Organization and Time- Management ●Weekly priority list ●Test Prep Worksheet ●Travel Plans ●Goal Setting o Daily reading objectives o Going through the full writing process Study Skills and Strategy Enhancement ●Integrating technology o Utilizing Cell phones o Online Library Access ●Visual Organizers o Writing Center ●Self-Exploration o Learning Style Assessments o Multiple Learning Strategies o Critical Thinking

FB GPA Trend FB Multi-Yr APR Trend

After a year in study hall I developed the skills to work more independently 53.33% Strongly Agree 46.67% Agree After a year in study hall, my peers began to recognize me as a leader: 33.33% strongly agree, 60% agree, 13.33% Disagree In my academic pursuit I feel I am supported by the university: 42.86% Strongly Agree, 57.14% Agree

Student 1 (Lance): Student 2 (Nick): Student 3 (Leo):

Bringing Learning Communities into Your Institution- What we Learned: ●Have programs synergistically work together. ●Forms are communication tools: If they don’t exist, create them! ●Staff: One person can’t do it all. Everyone has a role. Students, peer mentors, GAs, & advisors. ●Location: Need to have designated spaces.

Bandura, A. (2000). Exercise of human agency through collective efficacy. Current directions in psychological science, 9(3), Chen, X., & Carroll, C. D. (2005). First-Generation Students in Postsecondary Education: A Look at Their College Transcripts. Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Report. NCES National Center for Education Statistics. Tinto, V. (1999) Taking Retention Seriously: Rethinking the first year of college. NACADA Journal 19(2). Vygotsky, L. (1987). Zone of proximal development. Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes,