2 Chapter Two: Campus Resources

Authors: Brooke Tyson, Erin Nunnally

College resources to help you reach your educational and career goals are plentiful on most campuses. Here are several campus resources to know about and find early in your college tenure. You may not need them right away; some you may not need at all. But you will at least find several to be vital. Be familiar with your options. Know where to find the services. Have contact information. Be prepared to visit for help.

Advising

According to the Howard Community College website, “One of the most important steps you can take as you begin your college education is to get advised. You’ll learn what classes to take and how to get started on your pathway to success. Academic Advising isn’t simply a department – it’s a partnership between you and your academic advisor, and you will benefit from using these services regularly.

By working with your advisor, you can reach your academic and transfer goals in the following ways:

• Identify potential college credit that may give you a head start.
• Select your academic major and courses.
• Receive accurate, up-to-date information about HCC academics, policies, procedures, and processes.
• Develop a short-term plan for each semester and a long-term plan for graduation and transfer.
• Explore the variety of enriching experiences HCC has to offer like study abroad, service learning, and internships.” (1

Learning Assistance and Tutoring

Tutoring and writing centers are established for all students, and seeking help from them is expected and to your advantage. Such services are covered by your tuition dollars, and they can richly enhance performance in any area of your studies. The Learning Assistance Center offers tutoring in most subjects. All currently enrolled credit students are able to utilize one hour of tutoring per course each week. Visit the Learning Assistance Center in RCF 340 to schedule tutoring or contact the center through the website. 

Other Academic Support Facilities

Your college may also offer academic support in various other forms: for example, computer labs with trained assistants, mentors, Step UP coaches, peer advisers, and more. In our campus resources assignment and on the Howard Community College website, you can research what kinds of special support are available and be ready to take advantage of them.

Library

College libraries are staffed with professionals whose main function is to assist you and the college community in finding needed resources. Don’t hesitate to find the reference desk and get to know the reference librarians. Invariably you will learn about valuable resources—many of them online—that you didn’t know existed. Reference librarians are also educators, and they’re there to help you.

Campus Wellness Center

In the event that you need any non-emergency health services, the campus Wellness Center can be your first destination. Stop into the center and learn about the services offered, the hours of operation, emergency provisions, and wellness services available.

Campus Counseling

Counseling is an important resource available to all students. . Services can ranges from crisis counseling to assistance with minor concerns. Life stressors, such as deaths and divorces in the family, issues with friends, substance abuse, and suicide are just a few of the many issues that college students may experience or witness others struggling with.  Don’t take matters into your own hands. Get help! The counseling center can help you and support you in gaining solid footing during difficult times. Don’t hesitate to take full advantage of the services and help they offer.

Career Services

One of the most important purposes of college is to prepare students for a career. All colleges and universities have a career office that can assist you with many critical aspects of finding a suitable career. It may also help you find a campus job or review options for your major, help you get an internship, draft your résumé, and practice interview skills. Visiting the career office is a must for every student, and it’s worth doing early and often (rather than waiting until you’re about to graduate).

Disability Support Services

According to the Howard Community College student handbook

, “Disability Support Services is committed to ensuring that all students with disabilities, who are otherwise capable of meeting all technical standards of the programs in which they are enrolled, are provided access to all facets of Howard Community College.

Every student brings their own unique set of strengths and weaknesses to the higher educational environment. It is our philosophy and our hope that students will make use of a combination of services and accommodations to enhance their success while attending Howard Community College.” Please refer to the website and this guide for more information, or visit Disability Support Services at RCF 302.

International Education Office

Additional Services

Additional support centers that students may wish to visit include offices for financial aid, housing, diversity, student organizations, athletics, continuing education, international students, child care, and many others. Refer to your college Web site or other college directory for information about the many, many services that can be part of your college experience.

What are Office Hours?

Many students wonder why college professors share their office hours with students – even going so far as to put these hours on the course syllabus. Why would professors share these?

Office hours are times when instructors guarantee to their students that not only will they be in their office, but that they will be available to meet with students. Some instructors ask that students make an appointment, but for most, dropping by during office hours is strongly encouraged.

Below are some reasons why students may visit an instructor during office hours:

• To ask questions about the material
• To ask for clarity about an assignment, lecture, or reading
• To propose a topic for the next essay or project
• To ask for guidance with an assignment
• To discuss accommodations
• To talk about the student’s course grade
• To discuss a grade on an assignment
• To go over an exam or essay
• To discuss the student’s course major or career path
• To visit a past professor and share your successes

It is a good idea to come to your professor prepared with your questions and any materials needed for your meeting, such as an assignment prompt or the textbook. Your college professors love to meet with you, and they reserve these hours specifically to work one-on-one with students just like you. Take advantage of this great resource and visit your professors during office hours.

Some students, such as online students, may find visiting professors during office hours to be a challenge. If this is the case, talk to your professor about having a virtual office hour with you. You could chat using Google Hangouts or ZOOM, both free services that would enable you and your professor to see one another. But, if you are an online student, it is great if you can find a time to meet your online professors. Your professors enjoy getting to know you during the semester, and it is great to meet in person.

Your professors have weekly office hours for you. Challenge yourself to visit each professor’s office hours at least once this semester. Check your professor’s syllabus for office hours and room information; keep in mind that your instructor will hold office hours in her or his office – not in the classroom where you meet as a class. Use the Howard Community College map if you are unsure of building locations. Visiting your professors during office hours could be one of your short term goals for the term.

Campus and Student Life

I even lived on campus to get the college experience. I had five roommates and I still keep in touch with them while I’m on the road. —Tatyana Ali, actress, model, and R&B singer

Student Life

Whether your campus is small, tall, grande, or venti, you are probably amazed by the array of institutionally supported student activities available for your enrichment and enjoyment. Perhaps your biggest challenge is deciding how much extra time you have after studying and which added activities yield the greatest reward.

You can visit the HCC website to learn more about Student Life at Howard Community College. Regardless, though, of where your institution fits on the spectrum of size, or how many activities, clubs, and organizations your institution offers, it’s very important for you to be able to explore co-curricular interests—for learning, enjoyment, and personal satisfaction. Student life should always be satisfying and rewarding to students, as well as to alumni, faculty, staff, and community members. Together, these groups are an institution’s lifeblood.

Organized Groups on Campus

Student Organizations

Colleges have an abundance of student organizations. Colleges and universities may have hundreds of such organizations. Here is a lengthy and exciting list of student organizations at the University of Maryland Baltimore County

. Read about some of the clubs at Howard Community College here, or consider starting your own club on campus.

Generally, an organization is created and run by current students, and it’s sponsored by an executive officer, dean, or director of a major academic or operational unit. An organization must also have a mission that’s consistent with the mission of the college and sponsor. It might also collect dues from members, but in many cases, membership is free.

Civic Engagement and Leadership

Most colleges have many opportunities for you to learn about and prepare for civic engagement and leadership on campus and in the wider community. What is civic engagement? It’s your involvement in protecting and promoting a diverse and democratic society—and clearly, leadership is an important part of this. Student organizations and activities related to these pursuits may be student government associations, leadership courses and retreats, social change projects, service opportunities, social innovation initiatives, and many others. Read about Howard Community College’s Student Government Association here

Service and Volunteerism

If you are like many new college students, you probably already have experience volunteering. It may have been part of your high school requirements. Or perhaps you engaged in volunteering as part of a faith organization or as part of a community fundraising effort. Any of your volunteering can continue in college, too, as your institution will have many special and meaningful ways to stay involved, work on social problems, and contribute to a better world. Service and volunteer efforts may include philanthropy, activism, social entrepreneurship, advocacy, and direct service.[1]

At Howard Community College, we have a robust Center for Service Learning. In fact, some college classes even integrate Service Learning into the classroom! The Center for Service Learning also offers annual alternative breaks trips to different areas of the country and abroad.

Student Activities

On any college campus, satellite center, or virtual space, students may be involved in activities around the clock on any given day. These activities may include student organization activities as well as special presentations, meetings, performing arts events, sporting events, intramurals, recreational activities, local community activities, holiday events, commemorative events, and so on.

You are heartily encouraged to pursue any interests that enhance your education and enrich your student experience. Your participation can expand your horizons, deepen your interests, and connect you with new people.

Resources for Learning About Campus Organizations

It can seem overwhelming to learn about all the activities, events, clubs, organizations, athletics, performing arts, etc. on campus. Sometimes you may need to dig a little, too. The following resources are a good place to start:

• Your institution’s Website: Try a keywords search at your college’s Web site, using any of the following: student life, college life, student organizations, clubs, student activities office, student services, special events, events calendar, performing arts calendar, athletics calendar, etc.
• Email: Keep alert to the many email messages you receive from campus offices and organizations. They publicize all kinds of activities and opportunities for you to engage with campus and student life.
• Social media: Most institutions keep up-to-date information on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more. Individual groups on campus may also have separate social media presences that you can locate through the institution’s offerings. For example, Howard Community College shares a lot of information through their Instagram account.
• Bulletin boards: Take a look at bulletin boards as you pass through hallways in academic buildings, dining halls, sports facilities, dormitories, even local service centers, and retail stores. You can often find fliers with event details and contact information.
• Friends: Keep a pulse on what others are doing in their spare time. This is also a good way to make new friends and align yourself with others who have similar interests.
• Campus offices for social functions: Make a point to visit the student activities office or the student affairs office. Both often have physical spaces for student organizations.
• Campus offices for academic functions: Inquire with your academic adviser. He or she will likely be knowledgeable about campus organizations related to your interests and may know about local, regional and national organizations, too.

Activity: Campus and Community Activities

This project involves attending two campus and/or community culture activities (not athletic events), collecting mementos from each event, and displaying evidence of your experience via social media.

Objectives

• Attend campus activities/events to heighten a sense of connection with your institution
• Use social media to display artifacts from these events

Directions

• Choose two activities to attend (athletic events not included).
• Collect mementos (such as a ticket stub, a program, take pictures and/or video).
• Digitally archive them (for example, take a digital picture of the ticket stub).
• Create a digital presentation about your two activities. For each activity, include the following:
  • what, when, and where the activity occurred
  • why you chose the activity
  • uploads of the related mementos
  • what you learned from the experience
• Follow your instructor’s directions for submitting this activity.

Benefits of Participating in Student Life

How is it that becoming fully involved in student life can have such a positive impact on student satisfaction and academic success?

The National Survey of Student Engagement

—a survey measuring student involvement in academic and cocurricular activities—shows that student success is directly linked to student involvement in the institution. In fact, survey results show that the higher the level of student involvement is, the higher student grades are and the more likely students are to reenroll the next semester. All of this seems to translate to satisfaction. The following lists some of the many benefits and rewards that result from active participation in campus and student life.

• Personal interests are tapped: Co-curricular programs and activities encourage students to explore personal interests and passions. As students pursue these interests, they learn more about their strengths and possible career paths. These discoveries can be lasting and life-changing.
• A portfolio of experience develops: Experience with just about any aspect of college life may be relevant to a prospective employer. Is freshman year too soon to be thinking about résumés? Definitely not! If you gain leadership experience in a club, for example, be sure to document what you did so you can refer back to it (you might want to keep track of your activities and experiences in a journal, for instance).
• Fun leads to good feelings: Students typically pursue co-curricular activities because the activities are enjoyable and personally rewarding. Having fun is also a good way to balance the stress of meeting academic deadlines and studying intensely.
• Social connections grow: When students are involved in co-curricular activities, they usually interact with others, which means meeting new people, developing social skills, and being a part of a community. It’s always good to have friends who share your interests and to develop these relationships over time.
• Awareness of diversity expands: The multicultural nature of American society is increasingly reflected and celebrated on college campuses today. You will see this not only in the classroom but also in the co-curricular activities, clubs, organizations, and events. For example, your college might have a Black Student Union, an Asian Pacific Student Union, a Japanese Student Association, a Chinese Student Association, and many others. Having access to these resources gives students the opportunity to explore different cultures and prepare to live, work, and thrive in a vibrantly diverse world.
• Self-esteem grows: When students pursue their special interests through co curricular activities, it can be a real boost to self-esteem. Academic achievement can certainly be a source of affirmation and satisfaction, but it’s nice to have additional activities that validate your special contributions in other ways.

All in all, being involved in the campus community is vital to every student, and it’s vital to the college, too. It’s a symbiotic relationship that serves everyone well.

The key to getting the most out of college is to take advantage of as many facets of student life as possible while still keeping up with your academic commitments. That’s pretty obvious, right? What may be less obvious is that focusing exclusively on your academic work and not getting involved in any of the rich and diverse co-curricular activities on campus can come at a real price and even hamper your success.