by Kelly Rogge, KCKCC
Students might have noticed a few changes this spring at Kansas City Kansas Community College. One of the biggest is the Student Success Center.
Formerly student advising, the Student Success Center provides students a one-stop shop resource center. Located in the former Academic Resource Center, the Student Success Center houses testing, advising, orientation and the Freshmen Year Experience all in one office suite.
In addition, it is centrally located on the KCKCC main campus, down the hall from the admissions office and financial aid, putting all of these necessary services in one spot for easy student access.
“The Student Success Center is more than just enrolling students,” said Shawn Derritt, assistant dean of student services at KCKCC. “We want each of our students to be paired with an advisor that will stay with that student until they graduate. In that way we can ensure our students get the right resources to be successful while they are here at KCKCC.”
Derritt said the success center operates under a “concierge model,” meaning that a student success advisor helps students find the resources they need while they are enrolled KCKCC. The Student Success Center will also house My Plan – a program that allows students to plan their courses in accordance to the degree they are seeking.
“We want to be sure that the students’ needs are addressed early on,” he said. “In this way, students are not left alone to figure it out on their own.”
The success center will soon be remodeled into a more modern space, providing conformable areas for students to wait as well as a small computer lab, offices and meeting spaces. In the future, there will also be a hallway connecting the Student Success Center to Disability Services, which is located in the former student advising space.
“Students have started to notice the changes, and it makes sense to them,” Derritt said. “Students can stop by the admissions office, move to financial aid and end at the Student Success Center. We are all in the same hallway now, so it creates a much better flow to serve our students.”
Derritt said he hopes the new configuration will help solve the problem with students who apply to KCKCC, but do not follow through with the application process and become students.
“Students can take care of everything they need to in one area, enrolling right after they take the placement tests. We hope to capture more students in this way and be part of their exciting journey,” Derritt said. “It is all about making sure we are providing quality service to those who we serve here on campus.”