SSSThe Paw Print

Fall 2011 Volume I, Issue 1

Fall 2011 St. Olaf College TRiO Student Support Services Page 1

In This Issue:Congressman John Kline Supports TRIO Programs!

Welcome Back to the Hill!

Welcome Back Ice-Cream Social

Board of Leaders: Who, What, and When?

Summer Bridge 2011

Women’s Retreat

Men’s Retreat

Spotlight - Sindy Fleming

Resources on the Hill

Calendar of events

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St. Olaf College

A TRiO Student Support services Publication

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Making our Mark on St. Olaf

Congressman John Kline Supports TRIO Programs!

On August 25, 2011, a group of St. Olaf College TRiO students and alumni had the honor to meet with Congressman John Kline. Congressman Kline, who is also the Chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, represents the Minnesota 2nd district where St. Olaf is located. At the visit, the TRIO Alumni and students (Martin Olague—St. Olaf Class of 2004, Bibishe Botembe—St. Olaf Class of 2009, Jackie Yang—St. Olaf Class of 2012 and Pat Tinsley—St. Olaf Class of 2014) told their personal story and the ways that TRiO has impacted their lives and made earning a college degree a reality. In addition, the group talked with Congressman Kline about the urgent need to adequately fund TRiO so that more students are not cut from the programs. Between 2006-2010, 36,777 TRiO students lost service due to stagnant funding. In 2011, 70,000 more TRiO students are expected to lose services due to the cut of 26.6 million from the TRIO budget in April 2011. Congressman John Kline is a strong supporter of TRiO programs and reaffirmed his strong support of the programs during his visit as his quote below demonstrates.

“I recently had the pleasure of meeting several former Minnesota TRiO students whose powerful stories reaffirmed the important role TRiO plays in helping students successfully pursue higher education.” – Congressman John Kline

Please be sure to thank Congressman Kline for his support of TRiO programs!

Welcome Back to the Hill!

With much to look forward to, welcome to a new school year on the Hill! This year we are delighted to have 40 new students joined SSS from all parts of Minnesota, Illinois, and Florida. Also joining us this year is Sindy Fleming, who is the new SSS advisor. As we are starting the month of October, remember that there are several activities and social events happening. We have winter coat shopping for those of you in need of a coat for Minnesota’s winter, a slideshow of Summer Bridge 2011, cookies at

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Patrick Tinsley, Jackie Yang, Martin Olague, Congressman John Kline, Bibishe Botembe

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Friday, September 9th was a perfect day for Student Support Services (SSS) to host its annual Welcome Back Ice Cream Social. The event was held on the Tomson Hall Plaza. The Ice Cream Social is a fun event for SSS staff, new students, and returning students to socialize and share highlights of their summer and express their excitement for the academic year.

The day had a high temperature in the 70s and students eagerly waited in line for a bowl of cold ice cream to relieve the heat. While students were busily eating their ice cream and socializing, students were also encouraged to write to their district representatives and senators about supporting TRiO funding at the post card station. Writing postcards is a tradition in SSS and it is a great way to voice the concern of students about funding. Moreover, students can express in their postcards how TRiO and its services have benefited them and what loss it may bring to other students who may be unable to access these services in the future.

After the Board of Leaders were introduced, Kathy made an announcement about the budget deficits and budget cuts towards TRiO funding. These cuts may lead thousands of students to lose the support services they once had. Kathy reiterated the importance of being proactive in the legislative process, and one way that students can be proactive is by writing to their

representatives and senators.

The last activity of the event was the “Name Tag” game. In this game, participants shared three interesting facts about themselves with another person and switched their nametag with them. Participants claimed their new “name tag” identity and shared the information they had heard with someone else. After a few rounds, participants formed into a group to introduce their new name tag identity. This is great way to get to know new people as well as learn three interesting and memorable facts about people.

The ice cream social was a great way to start off the year! By Chue Vue

The Board of Leaders welcomed the stu-dents with ice-cream.

Welcome Back Ice-Cream Social

Kathy’s house, and we have our kickball event for first year students. Remember to mark these events in your calendar, and come join the fun!!!

First years:By now first year students are getting used to living on your own and have probably realized how lucky you are to be in SSS. You’ve learned that books…are not cheap as you see the digits come across at the checkout on Amazon or the St. Olaf bookstore. You are getting used to your roommate’s habits, you have probably signed up for more organizations than you can commit to, and are finding yourself with mountains of reading assignments and you think the professor is crazy for assigning so much. Most of all, you realize that in college there is lots of time between classes! Beware though, my fellow first year friends, and make good use of your time because you can’t learn a subject the night before a test!

Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors: Sophomores are probably glad you’re not a first year student as you watch them adjust to the college life, thinking about how that was last year. You’re pretty satisfied with your roommate(s) that you chose to live with. You know more about what you are interested in and working towards your possible major. You are also getting more involved with organizations and are ready for another year on the Hill. Juniors, you are working hard towards your declared majors and keeping your GPA up. You are working on resumes, looking for internships and working closer with professors. Lastly, we have our seniors, who have been here for the past four years. Many are starting to think about how they did on their GRE for graduate school, keeping those GPAs up as well, feeling good that they’re almost done, and wondering what they want to do after graduation. By Zoua Xiong

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Board of Leaders

What is the Board of Leaders? Who are they and what do they do? Some of you may have questions about what the Board of Leaders (BOL) is and what their responsibilities are for Student Support Services (SSS).

As the BOL vision states, they “are the representatives of the SSS students and they will drive this program to not only be seen by a small population of the campus, but to also be known by the campus at large.” The Board of Leaders consists of 15 SSS students who are divided into four committees Public Relations, Executive, Special Events and Center for Experiential Learning (CEL).

The Public Relations committee promotes SSS events and activities by posting information on Facebook, creating fliers and sending email announcements and reminders for events. The Executive committee communicates and meets with the President and Deans of the College to present the SSS program. They are also in charge of the fall and spring service projects. The Special Events committee assists with promoting specific SSS events, such as “Save TRiO” postcard

campaigns. They also coordinate the Faculty Awards each semester. The CEL committee works with CEL peer leader, Kabao Xiong, in organizing CEL workshops within SSS.

The Board of Leaders is responsible for the concepts and implementation of plans and events for the SSS Program. They also promote leadership and support SSS throughout the St. Olaf community. The Board meets every Monday to discuss trends and plans that involve SSS participants.

The BOL welcome everyone in SSS to attend their meetings, which are held every Monday at 3:15pm-4:15pm in Tomson Hall 300. They would love to hear your ideas and thoughts on past and upcoming events.

Board of Leader CommitteesPublic Relations: Ana Alvarez, Kayla Yang, Tong LorSpecial Events: Chue Vue, Carla Leon, Lansa Dawano, Tu YangCEL: Stephanie Villareal, Xeemee Yang, Nancy Castaneda, Zoua Xiong Executive: Pang Cha Vang, Moses Kulee, Ken Medina, Gaolee Vang

Back to front- First: Moses Kulee Second: Ken Medina Third: Kayla Yang, Ana Alvarez, Carla Leon, Pang Cha Vang, Tu Yang Fourth: Tong Lor, Gaolee Vang Fifth: Lansa Dawano, Zoua Xiong, Stephanie Villareal, Nancy Casteneda Sixth: Chue Vue Not shown: Xeeme Yang

By Kayla Yang

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Interview with Martha Campo, Assistant Director and Summer Bridge Program coordinator

G: What was your role in the Summer Bridge program?

M: As the program coordinator, I spent time communicating with first-year students about the SSS Summer Bridge Program. I also do the technical items such as finding reservations, setting up training for the staff, and vans for transportation on trips.

G: What is your most memorable moment?

M: I would have to say when the students moved in; because I get to see the families of the students and see the excitement from each student about coming to college.

G: How many students were there in this year’s summer bridge program, and where did they come from?

M: There were 39 students. Most of which were from the Twin Cities and a few from out of states such as Florida, and Illinois.

G: What activities (or highlights) can you share about the program this year?

M: It is almost a tradition every year to go to the Guthrie Theater towards the end of the summer

Summer Bridge 2011program. This year’s show was a musical called ‘HMS Pinafore’. Another activity we did was go to Camp Ihduhapi where the students learned about team building and played several activities to get to know each other better.

G: What was the main concept of the Biology course?

M: The main concept of the Biology course was plant germination. The students were given a vegetable plant in which they planted from day one and watched it grow, recording its growth and taking notes each time.

G: How did this group differ from groups in the past?

M: Every year each group is unique in their own way. But I would say this year’s summer bridge students were cohesive and worked well together.

G: What was the theme for the dorms?

M: This year’s theme was “Shape Your Character”, which pertains to how the student would want their character to be like for the school year. Whether it is to be on task, hard working, and so on. Old school cartoon pictures such as the Flintstones, X-men, and Looney Tunes were used as door decks for the students’ doors.

By Gaolee Vang

SSS Summer Bridge 2011Faculty, Staff, and Students

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Summer Bridge students working on the content for their posters.

To balance things off a bit, the stu-dents also had some fun, such as ka-raoke night.

Gao and Mai Chee conducting experiments on their plants.

Working hard in Supplemental

Instruction (SI) exploring the content a step further.

A highlight of the Summer Bridge Program is presenting students’ research posters to staff and faculty.

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St. Olaf has a way of draining even the most energized individ-ual, but a little getaway can really bring everyone to value their experience as a college student. The women’s retreat brought all SSS women who at-tended to realize that they are not alone in their struggle. A boy-free en-vironment along with a beautiful cabin was the

perfect setting to chat, do our nails, and indulge ourselves with chocolate.

Some played Taboo, Catch Phrase, Guess Who and others decided to be more active and play a game of volleyball. The night was young and so were we, sto-ries were told, memories were made and just like every story has an ending, the night fell, too.

The next morning after breakfast at Camp St. Croix we were ready to head to Welch Mill Canoeing for a day full of excitement. Once we had our snack bags and our life vest we loaded the bus and headed to the river. As we started down the old winding road, the clouds began to pass over the sun and everyone on the bus cre-ated their own horror film. Our laughter faded when we came to a stop where without a care in the world, we unloaded the canoes and buckled our life vest. Our five-mile canoe journey had just begun.

For some like Carla Leon ‘13 this canoeing adventure was their first, “after two years I decided it was time to join the SSS women’s retreat, and I must say canoeing was the highlight of the retreat, even though Steph and I got stuck a few times.” The Women’s 2011 Fall Retreat was a success. For those who weren’t able to make it, we encourage you to attend the spring retreat.

By: Anna Alvarez

Women’s Retreat

Lansa Dawano and Asia Black just finished canoeing.

Students participating in an activity that focuses on priorities and how to balance them.

Men and women gather before going their sepa-rate ways.

The women sharing their views on specific topics.

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On Friday, September 16, Student Support Ser-vices took 45 students to a weekend retreat at YMCA’s Camp St. Croix in Hudson, Wisconsin. The group departed after classes and arrived at the camp-site with students eager to enjoy the rest of the retreat. The weekend was anticipated to be cold and muggy. Warm clothes were recommended. The students were separated by gender. The men were placed in three separate cabins aligned to each other, while the women were placed in a separate cabin. Before they were able to settle in, the group of men got together for dinner with their peers and chatted.

The group met together and played icebreakers to get relaxed and get people out of their comfort zone. This was especially targeted for men because men have a sense of pride and the tendency to show toughness in-stead of sensitivity. Unfortunately, the men were not expecting for what they were going to receive. After the icebreakers, the group broke into two separate groups.

The women went one way, while the men stayed. The men engaged in several icebreakers and games that exposed themselves to their companions. The men’s motto during the retreat was “what happens in this room stays in this room.” This was to protect the men from losing their pride and at the same time remain tough. After the games, the men backtracked to their cabins. Some stayed in and played Texas Hold-Em Poker while some left to start a bonfire. Having to wake up early the next morning, the students decided to put the cards away and kill the fire and lay to rest.

The next morning, the men packed their belongings and tidied up the cabins before meeting up with their fellow schoolmates for breakfast. After breakfast, ev-eryone grabbed their belongings and loaded the bus and vans to depart to Welch Village for canoeing. Re-membering the year before, Kathy advised everyone to be extremely careful because the previous year many students fell into the freezing cold water. Students were excited to start canoeing after their canoeing les-son. The students boarded the bus and were driven 5 miles upstream. The two hour canoeing trip was the most anticipated activity that the students looked for-ward to and luckily the stream was only waist deep

and extremely shallow in some parts, meaning no one tipped over. After the last two canoes reached land, the students were tired and sore from the long canoe trip, but they had to last another ride back to school. On the ride back, many students slept from the lack of sleep and the earlier exercise. Each and every stu-dent enjoyed the retreat, having never ending con-versations among their friends who missed out; they recommended their peers to attend the next retreat that will be held during the spring semester. For those who did not attend the last retreat, be sure to reserve a spot for the next retreat.

By Tong Lor

Men’s Retreat

Men and women after canoing down the river for five miles.

The men and women gather as group to introduce each other and go over the plans for the rest of the day.

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If you haven’t met Sindy yet, here’s your chance to get to know her. Sindy was born in Guate-mala and raised in Bell Gardens, Southern Cali-fornia. Sindy is one of the four Student Support Ser-vices’ advisors. She used

to be an SSS advisor in 2001-2002, but left to attend graduate school. She then stayed home with her girls and taught Spanish for four years.

Sindy, along with Trey and Kathy are all graduates from Olaf (Um ya ya!). Sindy chose St. Olaf College because she knew it was the right choice. The gut feeling she re-ceived after running on the St. Olaf track, falling in love with the image of Rolvaag Memorial Library, and the beautiful outdoors during the spring season, cemented her decision to attend St. Olaf. When Sindy was attend-ing St. Olaf, she majored in Spanish Education. She was also a part of multiple multicultural organizations, such as Presente, Harambe, “Student Support Services”, and CUBE. She was a cross-country runner and participat-

ed in indoor track for one season. Sindy also lived in the Spanish and Diversity Awareness house. Duringher studying days, Sindy enjoyed everything. She enjoyed the four seasons of the Midwest, as she didn’t experi-ence much seasonal change in sunny California.

This summer Sindy worked with Summer Bridge and spent time with her daughters, who are seven and five years old. Some of her hobbies are reading Spanish novels, drinking coffee (if it is considered a hobby), running and spending time with her girls. Some things most people don’t know about her is that she would like to learn how to play the guitar and be fluent in French. If Sindy could have been anyone or anything, she wouldn’t change a thing. Sindy is already who she imagined herself to be because she became a teacher and an advisor. Sindy “LOVES” to work with students. Sindy is a sincere and passionate person, she puts her heart into working with students and assists them in becoming successful. If you haven’t had the chance to strike a conversation with Sindy, take the opportunity to because she is one of the friendliest people.

By Tong Lor and Kayla Yang

Spotlight on Sindy Fleming

WHAT ARE YOUR RESOURCES ON CAMPUS?Do you need a tutor, studying strategies, and/or feedback on a paper? visit the Academic Support Center (ASC) in Buntrock Commons 108 or call x 3288

Do you need help on your resume, cover letter, looking for internships, research opportunities , and/or career advice?Visit the Center for Experential Learning (CEL) in Tomoson Hall 270 or call x 3268

Thinking of going abroad and want more information? Visit the International and Off-Campus Studies office in Tomson Hall (TOH) 380 or call x 3069

Need transportation in or out of Northfield? Visit the Student Activities website and click on “Transportation“ or call x 3999

St. Olaf College TRiO Student Support Services Page 9Fall 2011

10/24 First Year-Kickball 7:00-8:00pm TostrudSSS First Years and Board of Leaders only

11/8 ASC and Fried Chicken Night 6:00-7:00pm Ytterboe Lounge (Must attend the entire hour long session!)

11/14 First Year Event - Bowling 8:00-9:30pm Jesse James Lanes-Transportation provided at 7:45pm in front of Bun-trock. First Years and Board of Leaders ONLY)

11/18 Play (Cities) Watch for more details! This will be a sign-up event-limited spots.

12/8 SSS Holiday Party 4:30-6:00pm Ytterboe Lounge Decorate cookies, eat pizza, play bingo, talent show and more!!!

12/14 Snacks for StudyingSSS office-11:00am until snacks are gone!

October 13: Grad School Trip Info Meeting11:30-12:00pm TOH 300 (SSS brings students on a trip to visit grad schools during Interim Break)

October 20: Education Luncheon11:30-12:30pm Regents 356 (Meet the Education Depart-ment faculty/staff and learn more about the education ma-jor)

November 10: Grad School Tips I11:30-12:30 TOH 275 (for those students attending the Grad School Trip during Interim Break)

December 8: Grad School Tips II11:30-12:30 TOH 275 (for those students attending the Grad School Trip during Interim Break)

October 26: Commitment Organizing (First Years)3:15pm TOH 210 (must attend this session or the 10/27 session)

October 26: Career Part I (Seniors)3:15pm TOH 214 (must attend this session or 10/27 ses-sion)

MARK YOUR CALENDARS?October 27: Commitment Organizing (First Years) 11:30am TOH 210

October 27: Career Part I (Seniors) 11:30am TOH 214

November 2: Grad School/Summer Jobs/Interns. (Sophomores)3:15pm TOH 210 (must attend this session or 11/3 session)

November 3: Grad School/Summer Jobs/Intern. (Sophomores) 11:30am TOH 210

October 16: Money Management 101 (First Years)3:15pm TOH 210 (must attend this session or 11/17 session)

October 16: Money Management 399 (Seniors) 3:15pm TOH 214 (must attend this session or 11/17 session)

October 17: Money Management 101(First Years) 11:30am TOH 210

October 17: Money Management 399 (Seniors) 11:30am TOH 214

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St. Olaf TRIO Student Support Services (sss)

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WORKSHOPS/INFORMATION SESSIONS

MANDATORY SESSIONS

TRiO Student Support Services St. Olaf College1520 St. Olaf AvenueNorthfield, MN 55057-1098

Tomson Hall 282(507) 786-8018 FAX: (507) 786-3750Toll Free: (877) 300-6688www.stolaf.edu/services/ssswww.stolaf.edu/services/triowww.mntrio.org

St. Olaf CollegeTRiO Student

Support Services

Program StaffKathy Glampe, Director

Martha Campo, Assistant DirectorTrey Williams, Academic AdvisorSindy Fleming, Academic Advisor

Paula Sannes, Administrative Assistant

The Paw Print is a publication of the TRiO Student Support Services program at St. Olaf College. It is published quarterly during the St. Olaf College academic year. Editors reserve the right to add, change or delete articles for spacing and clarity. All inquiries should be addressed to Kathy Glampe, Director of St. Olaf Student Support Services Program, St. Olaf College, 1520

St. Olaf Avenue, Northfield, MN 55057-1098.

The St. Olaf College Student Support Services (SSS) program is a college retention program funded by the U.S. Department of Education, St. Olaf College, The General Mills Foundation, the Hearst Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The SSS program is one of three TRIO programs originally funded under the Higher Education Act of 1965 whose objective is to help students overcome class, social and cultural barriers to complete their college education. The SSS program provides services to 160 eligible St. Olaf students annually.