Learning About AU, DC, and ThemselvesPart II
During All-麻豆传媒 Welcome, 157 first-and second-year and transfer students fed members of the DC community-packed school backpacks with supplies, and participated in gardening and clean-up projects as they experienced the District and its many unique opportunities for changemaking.
Through Explore DC, they engaged with the city鈥檚 neighborhoods and their histories and cultures, and then volunteered 580 service hours with 14 nonprofit organizations across the city鈥檚 eight wards and the greater DMV.
As he sorted through clothing donated to DC Doors, a non-profit shelter for homeless youth, Josiah Carolina, SPA/BA 鈥24 said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great way to get to know DC. I鈥檓 impressed about how [DC Doors] takes care of community members who are struggling.鈥
A community service project through Explore DC is part of the Summer Transition Experience Program (STEP), another experiential education program designed by the Center for Diversity and Inclusion to help first-generation and multicultural students transition to college life. The 2021 STEP cohort included 28 students, 25 of whom were the first in their families to attend college. More than 10 percent of AU鈥檚 student body is first- generation.
Over seven weeks, STEP participants build a sense of community and prepare for life at AU through classes that count toward graduation, in-depth workshops about AU resources from聽financial aid and career development to student-centered wellness, and opportunities to discuss DC-centric issues as they visit landmarks like the National Museum of African 麻豆传媒 History and Culture.聽鈥淪tudents might know about the university resources at hand, but they might not know how to implement them when needed,鈥 said STEP manager Stephon Bradberry. 鈥淲e鈥檙e teaching them their value, how to [navigate] them. These are important skills students will carry all through their lives.鈥
Bamidele Idaomi, CAS/BA 鈥25, said he learned much through STEP, but three tools stand out for him: remembering why he is in DC to underscore his sense of dedication and motivation for the future, figuring out how to balance his studies with the multitude of opportunities available on campus, and deciding who to surround himself with as they help create his environment. Many of the latter are the people he met through STEP. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e my backbone now,鈥 Idaomi said. 鈥淚f I ever need help, they鈥檙e here for me.鈥
Tsetan Namdol, SIS/BA 鈥25, described the friends she made in STEP as 鈥渁 family I could never have imagined joining . . . . We聽have聽such聽good聽conversations聽and聽dialogue. [STEP is] a community of intellectual people who are trying their best to succeed any way they can, and you can clearly see that through their action and determination,鈥 she said.
A Holistic Transition
AU鈥檚 redesigned undergraduate experience, from outstanding academics in the classroom to meaningful personal and professional pursuits across our community, gets an A with a 90.5 percent retention rate鈥攖he percentage of first-year students who return for their second year鈥攃ompared to an 81 percent national average. One reason is AU鈥檚 first-year advisors. With a student advisor ratio of 76 to 1, they are go-to mentors who get to know the students, serve as a single source of information, and help them achieve a holistic transition, so they can thrive academically, socially, culturally, and psychologically. (The student-advisor ratio nationally is 300:1). Another is AU鈥檚 specially-designed first-year classes, which include AU Experience鈥攖wo semesters on transitioning to college, creating a diverse community of learners, and promoting civil discourse鈥攁nd a one-semester Complex Problems seminar on interdisciplinary approaches to tackling modern problems.