SEMO FRIENDS PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR NEW STUDENTS

More than 40 Southeast Missouri State University faculty and staff members are serving as "Southeast Friends" this semester for more than 130 beginning freshmen.

Dr. Karen Myers coordinates the program. She said it is designed to improve retention of students at the school.

Under the program, faculty and staff serve as supplemental advisers to students.

They will contact students several times during the semester. The "friends" will inquire as to whether the freshmen are having any problems adjusting to college or need tutoring.

Myers said some "friends" may send greeting cards to students or invite them to lunch.

Dr. Gale McMahan, an education instructor, is serving as a "friend" to three students this semester.

"I'm new myself to Southeast," said McMahan, who joined the university last fall. "I really appreciate people helping me, so I wanted to try to be helpful to others."

McMahan said she has tried to assist one of her students in finding child care. She has helped another student get back into his academic routine after missing a few classes due to the flu.

Dr. Sterling Cossaboom, director of advanced placement teacher development, is a "Southeast Friend" to Janet Jones, a nontraditional student just beginning her studies at the university.

Cossaboom said he volunteered because it is important for students to know they can talk to faculty. "I just want to be helpful to students because they are the only reason we have a university," he said.

Myers said "friends" aren't necessarily mentors to students. "They are just a friendly connection, someone who cares about their success and can lead them to appropriate resources."

Myers, who directs the new student programs office, hopes to expand the program this fall.