Pitt C.A.R.E.S. helps new students, families get ready for college life

Fall classes at Pittsburg State University don’t begin until August, but more than 900 Gorillas-to-be are using the summer months to prepare to jump right in to college life when the new semester begins. In eight Campus Advisement, Registration and Enrollment Sessions (C.A.R.E.S.) held in June and July, PSU faculty, staff and students work with incoming students and their families to make sure the transition to college life goes smoothly.

Melinda Roelfs, interim co-director of Admission and Enrollment Services, said the morning portion of each C.A.R.E.S. session is devoted to giving new students and their families an introduction to college life. Staff and student C.A.R.E.S. leaders put on skits and answer questions in large- and small-group settings. Parents and students, who often have different concerns, have their own sessions, as do siblings.

“Parents of today’s students are often used to being very involved at the high school level,” Roelfs said, “so a big question for them is ‘How involved can and should I be when my child goes off to college?’ They also want to know about safety.”

C.A.R.E.S. leader Garrett Reist, a senior from Ulyssess, Kan., said students have some different questions.

“One of the most common questions I get,” Reist said, “is ‘Who are the best professors?’ They also want to know what there is to do on weekends and everyone asks about football, tailgating and GorillaFest.”

To help get new students involved, one component of C.A.R.E.S. is a campus activity fair that features the many events sponsored by the Campus Activities office and the scores of campus groups. Incoming students also fill out interest inventories that help match them with campus groups.

Roelfs said the student C.A.R.E.S. leaders are important to the success of the program.

“The student leaders can answer questions from incoming students and their parents from their own experience,” Roelfs said.

The afternoon portion of C.A.R.E.S. is devoted to advisement, visiting departments, meeting faculty and getting enrolled in classes.

Roelfs said C.A.R.E.S. has been very successful.

“We get lots of positive feedback both from the new students and from their parents,” she said. “I think they leave campus feeling much more comfortable about college life. They have also made some connections on campus and they have people they know they can call on if they have questions.”

For more information on Pitt C.A.R.E.S., visit Admission and Enrollment Services at www.pittstate.edu/admit.

---Pitt State--