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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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To help new TCC students in their transition to college, Breanna joined Connect2Complete as a Peer Advocate: “I wanted to help students navigate the system. My first semester I was confused and I didn’t know my way around campus. Now, students ask me how to get around campus.” By supporting students with personal and academic issues and connecting them to campus resources, Breanna sees the difference Connect2Complete is making: “I worked with a student who was not confident in herself, and now she is more encouraged and motivated in school.” C2C motivates Breanna, too: “I know I have to represent myself in a better manner, to be more professional and responsible, and to do well in school.” Connect2Complete is even influencing Breanna’s plans for the future: “I like what I’m doing as a Peer Advocate, so I might want to be a teacher or a mental health counselor.” “Slowly but surely,” Breanna explains, “we are making a difference.”
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Breanna McCoy is a Dean’s List student at Tallahassee Community College majoring in Criminal Justice and Sociology, but she hasn’t always done so well: “I didn’t feel prepared for college. Taking developmental education showed me the importance of studying and doing well.” Breanna came to TCC for a number of reasons: “None of my family have graduated college, so it pushed me to be the first in my family to graduate. But I also wanted to learn and get an education to be on a higher level.”
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Connect2Complete: A Conversation with Breanna
Peer Advocate – Tallahassee Community College, FL
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Right: Breanna, second from right, receives recognition at TCC.
Above: Breanna, at right, helps a TCC Connect2Complete student.
