2

Connect2Complete, a program of Campus Compact supported by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, works with nine community colleges in Florida, Ohio and

Washington to utilize peer mentoring and community-engaged learning as strategies for retention of low-income, developmental education students.

 

1

 

3

With  the  help  of  Connect2Complete,  Peer  Advocates  have  helped  Linda  choose  courses,  improve  her  computer  skills,  learn  about  financial  aid,  and  feel  more  confident:  “Connect2Complete  really  helped  me  out  of  a  lot  of  a  fear.  When  I  first  came  to  college,  I  was  really  nervous,  but  the  Peer  Advocates  brought  me  out  of  it.  They  said,  ‘Don’t  worry  about  your  age.  You  can  do  it.’”  In  addition,  Connect2Complete  has  allowed  Linda  to  participate  in  service  projects  in  the  community,  sending  classroom  decorations  and  letters  to  elementary  school  students  and  supporting  a  local  food  drive.    

When  she  started  at  TCC,  Linda  explains,  she  was  struggling:  “I  was  beginning  to  give  up  until  I  learned  about  this  program.”  Now  in  her  third  semester,  Linda  is  helping  other  students  on  campus  –  participating  in  new  student  orientation  and  telling  them  about  the  importance  of  having  a  Peer  Advocate.  Linda  hopes  to  be  a  Peer  Advocate  herself  in  the  future:  “Connect2Complete  changed  me  because  I  learned  things  I  hadn’t  learned  in  25  years.  I  wouldn’t  even  think  about  picking  up  a  book.  Now  I  can  open  my  math  book  and  know  how  it  goes.  I  am  so  excited,  I  feel  excited  about  school.”  

 

2

When  Linda  Bell  came  to  Tallahassee  Community  College  (TCC)  after  25  years  of  being  out  of  school,  she  was  not  sure  she  would  succeed.  To  get  her  ready  for  college-­‐level  work,  Linda  was  placed  in  developmental  math  and  English,  as  well  as  a  college  success  course.  Through  her  college  success  course,  her  teacher  Sarah  Crocket  encouraged  her  to  join  Connect2Complete.  And  she’s  glad  she  did:  “I  would  have  it  no  other  way.  Connect2Complete  keeps  me  going.”    

1

 

 

Connect2Complete: A Conversation with Linda

Connect2Complete Mentee – Tallahassee Community College, FL