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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.
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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.”
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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.”
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Connect2Complete: A Conversation with Linda
Connect2Complete Mentee – Tallahassee Community College, FL