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Pittsburg State aims to ensure that students thrive academically. To this end, there are many resources for students.
One of those resources is the Academic Calendar, which lists dates that students should be aware of such as deadlines for tuition and fees payments, last day to drop or add courses to schedules, holidays, academic breaks, final examination dates, and more.
Student Success, located in room 113 of Axe Library, offers a wide variety of events, activities, and resources designed to help ensure success.
Heather Eckstein, Director of Student Success Programs, said that there are many areas of concentration within the program.
“…So we have quite a few areas that we focus on related to Student Success,” Eckstein said. “Probably the first thing that new students notice is orientation. We call it PITT CARES and Transfer Pitt Cafes. We also coordinate the Gorilla Gateway class and in the fall semester that begins with Gorilla Warm-Up which is typically the Sunday before classes begin on Monday… We are the academic home of the Exploratory Students program. That is for students who have not yet declared a major…
For students who are struggling, Student Success has an early alerts service.
“…We coordinate the early alerts program for instructors to provide an alert to students who are not having great success,” Eckstein said. “We call it early alert because they can do it as early as the third week through the eighth week of classes and then we follow up with those students…”
Student Success also offers academic help.
“We have Academic Success Workshops to assist students with academic skill enhancements,” Eckstein said. “We have tutoring for some, I think right now it’s three, courses that are in the general education (requirements) and we promote tutoring that is offered across campus to students and provide referral.”
The Academic Success Workshops are held weekly with a new topic each week. Topics include but are not limited to note-taking skills, time management strategies, mid-term prep, research skills, relationship building with instructors, stress management, and final examination prep.
Tutoring programs are also available for general education courses. That list can be located on the Student Success Programs website. Tutoring services are only offered in the fall and spring semesters. It should be noted that if the course you are looking for a tutor in isn’t listed, then tutoring for that course is not available that semester for that course.
Student Success Programs also aid in accommodations and provide support services for students with disabilities. They also have transition classes for recent high school graduates, transfer students, and international students.
Another service offered at PSU is Gorilla Geeks.
Located in room 109 of Whitesitt Hall, Gorilla Geeks can help with GUS, resetting PSU passwords, and assist with PSU email accounts. The Gorilla Geeks Help Desk helps students with technology needs such as giving assistance with education software packages used on campus like Office 365 applications and Canvas, basic help with computer hardware or software problems, and E-Waste.
