By Diana Poist
Published on October 10, 2007
In Building 6, next to the Testing Center on the Pensacola campus of PJC, is an office that Rachelle Burns likes to refer to as a “one-stop shop.”
Burns is director of Student Support Services, one of seven Department of Education TRIO programs targeting at-risk college students. In the more than 20 years the program has maintained offices at PJC, more than 3,500 students have stopped by to take advantage of the services.
“We are funded for 225 students, but we are allowed to fill in the gaps when students graduate, so we average between 250 and 300 students a year,” Burns said.
Whether an eligible student wants to borrow a textbook, visit the tutoring lab, or seek advice from an assigned coordinator, Burns and her staff are there to lend a hand. Students who qualify for the program can also get advice and help with financial aid applications, and take advantage of numerous other services offered through the program.
An income-based program with special emphasis on disabled and first-generation students, the office works with students already enrolled in college, and is aimed at keeping students in school and on track to attain their college degrees.
Although income guidelines differ slightly from FAFSA and Pell Grants, “I usually tell students if they are eligible for Pell Grants, they are probably eligible for our program,” Burns said.
For some students this includes qualifying for direct grants of up to $3,000 for an associate degree program, usually paid at $500 per semester. These grants are meant to cover “remaining need” after all other financial aid is paid, according to Burns.
Clara Atkinson joined the program in 2005, after hearing about it “through the grapevine.” She has found the counseling and tutoring services especially helpful.
“At times you get a little overwhelmed with everything that is going on. They’ve been wonderful to help me realize that it will all pass,” Atkinson said.
About the tutoring lab, Atkinson said, “If I get hung up on a certain thing, there is always some one over there to help out.”
A minimum of two-thirds of program participants must be low income, first generation students. Burns refers to these students as “trailblazers.” With no family members to offer advice or guidance based upon experience, the college world can be very intimidating.
“It can be a maze, no matter what time of life you come into it, college can be a maze,” Burns said.
Alessandro ‘AB’ Bailetti, a native of Peru, came to the United States in 2004. He is one of Burns’ trailblazers.
“Nobody in my family knew how to become a college student. I had to do everything by myself,” Bailetti said.
A biology/pre-med major, Bailetti credits both the counseling and tutoring services for helping him overcome his concerns about limited social and English skills.
Bailetti now serves as a PJC Student Ambassador, and president of the Theta Chi chapter of Phi Theta Kappa.
Atkinson and Bailetti are generous in their praise of the PJC Student Support Services program, and the people who are there to offer help.
For Bailetti it is a matter of trust. Speaking of Burns, who is Bailetti’s assigned coordinator, “I know I can trust her, she has helped me more than once.”
“They are good at helping you get where you need to be. They just help you succeed,” Atkinson said.
Bailetti agrees. “They will take your hand and help you every step of the way. It is-I want to say their job, but it is their commitment to us.”