Amelia Tierney | Staff Writer | atierney2@mail.smcvt.edu
In January the Student Success Center (SSC) officially opened up on the second floor of the Durick Library, providing a comfortable space for students to go with many resources all in one area. The SSC absorbed some of the responsibilities of the Purposeful Learning Office. The SSC is a combination of seven centers that are located in the library: the Office of Accessibility; Advising; Be Well; the Writing Center; the Study Abroad Office; International Student Support Services; and the Boucher Career Education Center.
Responsibilities that the SSC took on include advising for students. Advisors help guide students through their academic classes and how they are doing in general on campus. A big part of the Purposeful Learning Office was to give students somewhere to go and connect them with advisors who would help their journey into college and throughout.
Katie Barry is now the senior advisor working in the SSC and part of her role is carrying over the responsibilities that happened in purposeful learning. Barry helps students with their transitions into classes and also focuses on students’ academic success.
“The whole reason for the success center is because the president realized it makes sense for people who work with students in advising, people who work with students for career help, accessibility, accommodation, peer tutor and writing center, instead of being buildings away on campus they are all co-located,” Barry said. “So all of these resources being in one place, creates greater access and makes students maybe more willing to seek out these resources knowing it’s in one place.”
The SSC is designed to be student-oriented, the staff wants students to utilize the space. “I want this space to be a place that students can study, that they can go to people to meet for appointments, but then also they can start to find new connections here,” Barry said. Students have been reserving the meeting room located in the space. The Student Investment Fund and Admissions Ambassadors have conducted meetings there as well as junior seminar classes. They want to see students filling up that space and being a part of it. That meeting room is available to reserve if you contact Katie Barry at kbarry3@smcvt.edu.
Even though the office of Purposeful Learning no longer exists, the purposeful learning course is still a requirement. The class will continue running for first years to help ease their transition to college and connect them with the community. Heidi St. Peter was the director of Purposeful Learning and her new leadership role is evolving. She will still be focusing on students who are in their first year of college and working with student life.
Ingrid Peterson is the director of the Career Education Center which has also recently made the move into the Durick Library and is also located on the second floor. “What has really happened with purposeful learning has sort of morphed into this general advising model, and then career education, our responsibility has moved over here, just because there’s a lot of overlap,” Peterson said. “If you’re talking about choosing a major with your advisor, you could also talk about it with us.
Tim Mackin is the director of Undergraduate Education and directing the Student Success Center is part of that role. “My hope is that it will help students have more of an experience, it will make that experience easier,” Mackin said. “In some sense, take the pressure off a little bit, so we just have to facilitate those kinds of conversations, and it also facilitates conversations between the staff. When you’re with people every day, you’re running into different kinds of things. The fact that career services and professional advising are together means it’s easier to talk about how their classes relate to their job successfully.”
All the different offices in the Student Success Center are designed to help students be successful during their time here at St. Michael’s College and even afterward. The Career Education Center also still helps alumni. “It’s all about the students’ success from when they get here until they don’t, for whatever reason, need us anymore,” Peterson said.
To follow along with upcoming events and to stay updated with the Student Success Center, follow their Instagram @smc.student.success.