Grant Year: 2022
The College of Marin (COM) offers a Summer Bridge program to enable incoming first-generation college students to transition into college and persist to achieve their goals. The intensive three-week college preparatory program focuses on math and English skill-building, combined with college success skills and the development of supportive relationships with peer-mentors and COM Learning Communities, which will continue to support them throughout their college career.
Students meet academic counselors, faculty members, research librarians, student ambassadors, and coordinators of college support programs, all of which builds their understanding of the college system and how it can work for them. Incoming students learn how to navigate the different college departments, to register for classes, and apply for financial aid. By reviewing English and math, students can often be placed into higher course levels, which ensures a higher rate of success, along with saving time and money. Academic counselors meet one-on-one with each student to discuss their future, create an academic path, and career options.
Each year, COM along with 10,000 Degrees their program partner, compile data on the effectiveness of their Summer Bridge program, measured in terms of equity, engagement, completion, retention, persistence, completion, and success. The school year COM Learning Communities extend the impact of Summer Bridge, using a blended model of content and counseling class. The summer experience, connected to the engaged, ongoing support helps students develop a sense of belonging, awareness of resources, self-advocacy, confidence, and competence to succeed and persist at a significantly higher rate.