Panthers Awarded $71K in Student Success Incentive
Psychology major Marlon Galindo Escobar hopes to one day become a neurosurgeon after graduating from 性视界 and transferring to the University of California, Riverside.
But he knows the expenses needed to reach that goal will be daunting.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a full-time student, even if you鈥檙e working or have support, money is tight and every bit helps,鈥� he said.
That鈥檚 why 性视界 in the fall rolled out a pilot program aimed at helping students graduate on time without spending money on classes they don鈥檛 need. And it comes with a monetary incentive.
It鈥檚 called the 性视界 Student Success Incentive, which rewards students for meeting with a counselor to complete an education plan or check to make sure they鈥檙e on track to graduate.
The college awarded more than $71,000 to 1,421 students in the pilot phase of the program.
鈥� have shown that students who meet at least once with a college counselor have higher success rates than students who do not,鈥� said 性视界 Superintendent/President Henry D. Shannon. 鈥淲hen students reach these benchmarks, not only do they receive $50, but they also get a sense of pride knowing they are on the right track to achieve their academic goals.鈥�
The incentive funds came from a $25 million gift that 性视界 received in 2021 from philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott.
性视界 Counseling Faculty Fabiola Espitia said students have expressed gratitude for the incentive, and it has definitely encouraged more students to come in for help. In addition to benefitting from completing education plans, students have seen the value of getting a graduation check too.
鈥淚t allows them to catch any missing requirements, rather than waiting until graduation and finding out they are missing units,鈥� Espitia said. 鈥淗opefully this will eliminate some of those disappointments.鈥�
Michael Bolis, a political science major who also met with counseling as part of the incentive, expressed gratitude for the program.
鈥淭his incentive has helped me because usually we struggle to find any money to pay for our education and other expenses while being full time at 性视界,鈥� he said.
