The riots and turmoil in urban society, the alienated youth turning to drugs and crime, the despair of mil­lions caught in the web of poverty, have all helped awaken the nation's conscience to aid its hapless citi­zens. The challenge is many-faceted and complex. For many, education holds the only promise of breaking out of the trap of poverty. Education at different levels and of multiple kinds must be made accessible to the poor. The Federal government, recognizing this as an important area of concern, is assisting states and coun­ties to innovate programs to identify, recruit and train the poor. The College Opportunities Program, currently in operation at the Manoa campus of the Univers ity of Hawaii, is an example of one such innovative demon­stration project. The following is an account of a coun­scl ing program planned and implemented through con­sultation.

The Program

The local progrnm is a ten-week Summer ,ind fin,t­year residential college program for students from two Model Neighborhood Areas (MNA), Kulihi-Palama, and Waianae-Nanakuli. It is a demonstration project to select and prepare high-risk young people to maintain themselves in a full-time Univers ity program funded by the Honolulu Model Cities. The University of Hawaii provides the im,tructional services, the physical facilities, basic office equipment, telephone services, supplemen­tal fiscal services and financial assistance equivalent to two positions at the associate professor's rank for special instructional need~. Administratively, it operates out of the Chancellor's Office and campus-wide cooperation with existing services is facilitated through the Dean of Student's Office. The Project Director is responsible to the funding agency and submits a monthly progress and budget report to the Model C ities Director, as well as the MNA Advocates.

Psycho-Social Survival: A Conceptual Framework for Student Survival

Doris N. Bitner

The project began in June, 1970, with 30 young people selected ( 15 from each MNA) through referrals from sources which included, teachers, social workers, probation workers, community leaders and agencies, or self-application, with or without high school diplomas, coming from students who would not normally be ad­missible lo a four-year degree program. The screening committee consisted of University, Community, and MNA representatives. The usual admission require­ments were waived, and University housing guaranteed for the students. For the first year, the staff consis1cd of the Project Director (temporarily on loan from the American Studies department), I counselor, 2 dormi­tory residential aides, ,md an office secretary. An evaluation of the project's first year operntion was con­ducted by an outside consulting firm1on contract to the Univer!->ily of Hmvaii and the Honolulu City Demon­..,lration Agency. The first year\ record of having 22 out of the original .30 complete their Freshman year was rated a !->Ucce~s and the number of participants for the second )Car wu.., increased to 20 from each Model Neighborhood Arca. The evaluator~ pointed out the need to s trengthen the counseling function of the project, and Model Cities made !-i pccial funds available lo hire a consultant for the current school year. The counseling program to be dc~cribcd in lhis article represents only the act ivities s ince August I, 1971. At present, the staff cons ists of the project d irector, 2 counselors, I graduate assistant, 2 dormitory aides, an office secretar), and the consultant.

Background Data Influencing Direction of Counseling Proccs!'.

The students while s haring the label of "underprivi­leged" arc drawn from two diven,e social settings. One group comes from an inner-city, public housing area, and the other from a rural, com,lal ''homestead" area

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peopled mostly by Hawaiians clinging to their private culture~ The life-styles of the two areas arc different, although there arc many similarities in their cultural values and hcirarchical systems. Statistically, they both share a high incidence of high school drop-outs, juvenile delinquency, and in number unemployed. The Depart­ment of Education Report of March I 969

3indicatcs not

only an increase in drop-out rate for the academic year 1967-68, but also an increase in the percentage of stu­dents giving "dislike of the academic experience'' as the reason for their dropping-out. Although specific attrition rates are not available for the local University, an informal estimate given by the Dean of Students con­firms the national trend of large numbers of students leaving the school scene each year for reasons other than academic difficulties. This indicates that many potentially capable students arc leaving educational institutions, and that those disenchanted with the aca­demic life at the high school grades walk out at that level with no aspirations to seek training at higher levels. The College Opportunities Program here, as well as similar programs on the Mainland, arc based on the premise that given supportive and meaningful services, most young people can succeed in school. The parents of students from the Model Cities areas indicated educa­tion as a desirable value in interviews with the project team as well as responding similarly to Gallimore and Howard in their study. However, lacking in training themselves, many of them arc helpless in terms of point­ing out the linkage of education to future opportunities, or to talk their children into remaining in school. Further, the lack of models personifying the benefits of higher education in their communities contribute to the overall attitude frequently expressed that education, while desirable, is for others, not them.

The Comprehensive Counseling Program

The program is concerned with the whole student in the context of a large State University. How to deliber­ately personalize the developing experience of partici­pants became the focus of planning. The evolving pro­gram represents an integral, rather than a supportive, service to the student. From recruitment until the student is able to function in the regular university com­munity, total effort is placed in making accessible to him the information, skills, and expertise necessary to sur-

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vive and maintain himself. This means frequent and intensive contact with first-year students, lesser contact with the second-year students, and minimal contact once the student attains Junior class standing. As a demon­stration project, and for purposes of evaluation, the progress of all students will be followed through until graduation.

The students in the College Opportunities Program may be characterized as "high-risk" in terms of the multiple problems they bring with them. Serious familial and personal problems compounded by past academic failures have, in many cases, eroded the self-confidence of these young people. Indeed, the student must have experiences confirming or affirming his "sclfhood" be­fore he is free to learn other behaviors. The thrust of the College Opportunities Program then becomes one of focusing on the psycho-social survival of the partici­pants. Opportunities must be provided, in individual and group sessions, for the student to confirm his entity, his personhood. The independent, integrated individual capable of self-conscious choice emerges only after self-identity has been established. To effect a compre­hensive attack on this commitment, the staff training has focused on examining the psycho-social survival needs of man as well as questioning the assumptions brought by the members. A recurrent theme has been the need to recognize that solutions to conflicts must be culturally meaningful to each student. The fortuitous presence of a young staff member (himself a product of a Model Cities area) who is able to verbalize the internal stress and pain he experiences when choosing appro­priate behaviors has lent relevance, vitality, and valuable insights to the problem of conflict resolution. The fol­lowing anecdote illustrates a common dilemma facing our young people: At the weekly sports activities, fights sometimes erupt. As a staff person, Johnny feels he must not, himself, engage in physical combat, but rather serve as a "model" to the others by disengagement, yet feels, too, that the students will consider him "chicken" if he does not take up the challenge. Intellectually, he can verbalize a resolution acceptable to himself, but emotionally, the conflict continues. The approach of the program is to assist people to operate comfortably within the various cultures in which they find themselves. That is, we arc interested in their acquiring a repertoire of appropriate behaviors for different contexts. The

sharing of experiences, planning approaches to problem solutions, and the weekly interaction that takes place at staff training sessions should develop the skills of mem­bers in understanding group dynamics, and an apprecia­tion of how to bring about individual change through group process. Another aspect of staff training involves efforts to strengthen the staff counselors' skills through frequent brief conferences with the consultant, discussing the wide variety of problems brought in by the students. Beyond the typical problems of college students struggling with identity crises and seeking independence, the College Opportunities Program students bring with them numerous personal problems stemming from serious family conflicts. The loss of a wage earner can be disastrous for debt-ridden families, and subtle, and at times direct, pressure is brought to bear on the young student who is unable to help his financially-needy family. Caught in this conflict of school versus family demands, some students, already indebted to school Joan plans and carrying a full academic load, attempt to seek part-time jobs; or, if the pressure from home is too great, consider leaving college. Solutions arc not simple, and require the assistance from other campus agencies as well as community agencies. While solutions arc being worked out, psychological support for the student in conflict is vitally important. Broken families sometimes leave a student without a home base, resulting in lone­liness and feelings of rejection. Weck-ends and holidays create problems for these young people, until they acquire the confidence of seeking new interpersonal relationships. The "straight" middle-class world found on campus creates other problems for some of the students who come with a history of drug abuse, or a juvenile record. Some of the rules, regu­lations, and campus mores create internal stress and even panic at times. Students have reported in­cidents on campus where other students and a few professors have clearly made them feel "un­wanted." And, as one of the students said, "Boy, they might as well say it out loud when they make you feel like you don't belong here!"

The married students in the Program need assist­ance in securing adequate housing, learning to manage on limited funds, arranging for child care, and frequently, personal counseling to help them adjust to their new roles as students.

To meet the above and similar problem situations, the on-going counseling schedule includes periodic conferences with each participant. At mid-semester, progress reports from instructors arc reviewed with each student and tentative plans made for the fol­lowing semester. These conferences provide diag­nostic clues for possible remedial and preventive measures.

An experimental group program was started in the Fall Semester, 1971, for the sixty students in the Col­lege Opportunities Program. Each group met once a week with two leaders. The underlying philosophy of the group model was to provide an opportunity for the students to explore alternative solutions or options in meeting conflict situations. The focus was on how to survive in a large University through tasks involving: I) vocabulary building, 2) preparing for and taking tests, 3) improving listening skills, and 4) gaining ex­perience in speaking out. Students utilized tape record­ers, video, and role-playing as aids in gaining the necessary skills. There were several goals for the Col­lege Opportunities Program students: I. To be given frequent opportunity for testing and af­

firming their identity. 2. Lessening of the threat to personal integrity as new

behaviors arc acquired. 3. Enlarging of their perception of a college experience

so that appropriate behaviors may be learned. 4. To learn about, accept, request, and utilize the many

services available within the campus-wide system. 5. To acquire training in the "self-help" model so that

they can assume leadership roles within the group, the program, and eventually the wider community.

Early in the semester, it was discovered that many students needed immediate help in organizing their time and work habits to meet all class assignments, and also keep up with their outside reading tasks. The acquisi­tion of the "need" to become organized, while urgent, was a slow process. It was anticipated that with in­creased participation in the program offerings, students would learn to seek help, and also learn when and where help of various kinds would be available. ( Plans arc now being made to replace the present graduate students, who arc serving as leaders, with second-year College Opportunities Program students. These stu­dents will receive training before meeting with their

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interest groups each !,emester. The rationale for this move is the importance of training indigenous leaders.)

Other Counseling Concerns

The challenges to the counselor<; arc many, and re­quire a personal commitment to serve a.; the student's advocate in all spheres found on a large univen,ity cam­pus. This means being informed about academic require­ments, special programs, major fields of !,tudy offered, career opportunities, campus organizations, and athletic opportunities available, library, and other resources on campus.

The residential aspect of the College Opportunities Program is an important one. Much socialization train­ing of an informal nature take!! place in that setting. The students have faced some adjustment and attitudinal problems in daily contact with peers from all over the state, and, in adapting to rules seen, by some, as too rigid and based on middle-class values. For many stu­dents, this opportunity 10 live on campus with its many available resources has been their first "break" away from crowded, problem-plagued neighborhoods. This environmental change with access to supportive services is necessary for the academic survival of many of the students. An informal study is underway to determine the feasibility of extending housing privileges to second­year students. Periodic meetings arc held with the Uni­versity Housing personnel to promote cooperation, understanding, and mutual assistance.

To encournge students to utilize the facilities of the College Opportunities Program office, where ref crence books and typewriters arc available, and to maintain contact with staff, the office is open four nights every week until eleven p.m. Staff members arc on duty and a wide variety of activities arc offered, as well as short­term study-aids workshops run by volunteers. Cultural offerings on campus and in the community arc posted and attendance is encouraged by fimmcial supplements to purchase tickets, The students have their own govern­ing organization and their steering committee is invited to the weekly staff meetings.

Evaluation

One of the objectives of the College Opportunities Program is the charge to the Counseling Program to provide services which will enable all students to main-

10

tain themselves at the University of Hawaii. The evi­dence will be the number of students who remain in good !!landing at the end of the year. The survival rate will provide one factual index.

Another measure of academic adjustment will be the post-test scores on the STEP (Sequential Tests of Educa­tional Progress) which was administered to entering ~tudents in June, 1971. Comparisons of grade-point averagc(GPA) wilt be made in several categories, includ­ing, (a) Freshmen class average; (b) those who had tu­torial help against those who did not; (c) those who par­ticipated in voluntary workshops and group sessions against those who did not; (d) those who worked part­time against those who did not; (e) those who carried the minimum 12 credits a semester against those who carried a heavier load, and of course, a check will be made on the number of counseling contacts and its effect on performance. Of special interest will be the comparing of the second-year students' GPA of those who lived on campus against those who did not.

Measures of personal and social adjustment will in­clude number of contacts with College Opportunities Program staff, and referrals made to other agencies and its disposition, as well as the number of students assum­ing leadership roles within the Program or the various campus organizations. Students will be asked to evaluate the various programs initiated by the Counsel­ing staff and rate its eff ectivencss.

Summary

The major goal of the Honolulu Model Cities, in the area of education, is ''to provide public education of such quality that the residents, particularly the youth of the community, arc prepared to participate in the development of society and to secure for themselves and their families a meaningful and fruitful life." The College Opportunities Program, now in its second year of operation on the Manoa campus of the University of Hawaii, represents one implementation of the stated goal. It's objective is to reach out into the Model Cities areas and provide access to higher education to capable young people who normally would not have received the option. The Program is based on the premise that counseling and other supportive services will enable these young people to survive and maintain themselves in a regular four-year degree program. It is also based

on the belief that a democratic society must provide access to training opportunities to all of its citizens. As a demonstration project, innovative ideas have been encouraged in providing services to the student,;. An evaluation of the effectiveness of the services will pro­vide future direction.

Several implications to higher education arc emerging from the Program. One of these is the need for institu­tions to examine its admission policies and check wheth­er !>omc of its requirements may effectively be cutting off potentially capable applicants by its overemphasis on the verbal skills. Another area of concern is the un­equal representation of the state's geographic and ethnic population on campus. Another concern deals with financial aids. Many students from poverty area,; find they must seek employment in spite of the loans and grants made available to them, because their families cannot afford to lose a wage earner. Finally, the in­dividualized counseling services described in this article, while vitally necessary for groups of "special students," certainly include services which should be available to all students on campus.

Referent:~

I. Annis, Arthur P .• and R.W.G. Bugcn1al. "Program Evalua· tion, Honolulu Model Cities Projecl," April 1971. Behavior Science Corporation, Panorama City, California.

2. Gallimore, R., and A. Howard. eds. "Studies in a Hawaiian Community: Na Makamaka o Nanakuli:· Dcparlment of An1hropology, Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1968.

3. State of Hawaii. "Hawaii Public Schools: Dropouts and Sus­pensions. 1967-6s:· Department of Education Reporl of March 1969, Honolulu. Hawaii.

Doris N . Billi('' is Ca1111selillg Cm1s11/ta111 , Co/leg(' Oppor11111i­tfrs Program, Unil'enity of Huwuii. Mrs. Bitner, " gr11d11utt• of Farrington High Sdwol. Hmw/11/11, recefred her BA from 1/u• Unil'ersity of Hull'uii, and MA i11 G11ida11ce from Teachers CC1llege, Co/11111/ii(I Unil'ersity. She has bt'('II u Cmmsclar wit/, tire U11il'er.sity of Hawaii's Cm111uli11g mu/ Testing Ce11ter, a YC1utlr Co1111st'lor with tire Hall'uii Suu,• Employment Seri•it,·. Director of the Guiduncr Depurt111e11t of the Ho110/11/11 Business Colh·ge. Mrs . Bitm•r spell/ the ucad,•mic .\ ' ('Ur /970-71 us 11

Co1111sefor with t/1t• H11rris/111rg Area Comm1111ity Colle,:e, ff(lr­rish11rg, Pe1111sy/i'U11iu, w,d us Assisllllll Director of the /970 University "f Hawaii's" S11111111er /iutitute for teachers and ,mm­se/ors of the disudl'U11tuged." Mrs. Bitner iJ tire 1rife of u pm­fcssor of psychology 111 the U11il crsity uf Hull'uii, and JIii! mut/rer of t11•u te<•n-ugecl daughters.

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