Naugatuck Valley Community College has been awarded a grant in the amount of $150,000 by the Connecticut Office of Higher Education for the Promoting Academically Successful Students (PASS) program. PASS is a new initiative of the Minority Advancement Program (MAP) to address students of color who are placed on academic probation and need additional support to redress their academic standing. A successful student of the PASS program will develop sustainable skills to remain on track to graduation and be removed from academic probation.
The grant funds 4 academic coaches to support 50 students on academic probation. The students self-select on a first come first basis to enroll in the program. According to Rob Sheftel, Director of NVCC’s Academic Center for Excellence, where the program is administered, “This semester our student engagement is over 90%. We are excited to be awarded our third round of funding for the PASS program which allows us to provide students with academic skills workshops and one-on-one support. We are seeing great results. Students are engaging and improving their grades.”
Angela Chapman, Associate Dean of Development, commented on the grant award. “We are truly grateful to be awarded this funding to continue a program designed to help students develop greater confidence in their academic abilities, so that they may realize their full potential and achieve success. In its continuation, PASS seeks to help NVCC students of color on academic probation transition off and remain on track to graduate.
Naugatuck Valley Community College serves Beacon Falls, Bethel, Bethlehem, Bridgewater, Brookfield, Cheshire, Danbury, Middlebury, Naugatuck, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Oxford, Prospect, Roxbury, Sherman, Southbury, Thomaston, Washington, Waterbury, Watertown and Woodbury. The College is located on a 110-acre campus at 750 Chase Parkway, Waterbury, Conn., and in Danbury at 190 Main Street. The College is one of 17 institutions governed by the Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education. Visit nv.edu for more information.