Glen Oaks receives funds to assist low-income students

A program to assist at least 140 low-income, first-generation students, and those with documented disabilities now will be possible at Glen Oaks Community College.

The program comes thanks to a $1.1 million education grant through the U.S. Department of Education’s Trio program.

The grant, nearly $220,000 a year for five years, will provide Student Support Services. The salaries of three full-time management staff and one half-time secretary are included in the funding.

Dr. Gary Wheeler, President of Glen Oaks Community College, says the Student Support Services will go toward keeping students in school and improving their academic performance.

To qualify students must be pursuing a four-year bachelor’s degree and attending Glen Oaks Community College for the first two years of a four-year program. Students also must meet low income eligibility rules for family income and come from families where neither parent has a bachelor’s degree.

On average, more than 81 percent of enrolled students at Glen Oaks are first-generation college students. Nearly 75 percent of the school’s enrolled students have documented disabilities and one in eight students are from families meeting the federal definition of impoverished.

Career advisement is part of the program. The program also will help students link with professionals who can help them navigate through the many steps to graduation.  

Supplemental instruction, another major factor in student success, also will be offered as part of the program. The school will identify courses students often find difficult, and added sessions outside of those classes will help the students better understand course material.

In some classes, study groups may be used and in others one-on-one tutoring may be offered. Workshops on a variety of subjects like time management and exam-taking methods is another option being explored.

Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: Dr. Gary Wheeler, Glen Oaks Community College