OSU-Cascades is adding tools and support so they can.
Students are more likely to achieve if they feel supported — personally and academically. For underrepresented and first-generation students, who make up nearly one-third of the student population at OSU-Cascades, student success services are even more important. And soon, they will find all the support they need in one place.
The Oregon Legislature has approved $13.8 million for a dedicated Student Success Center at the Bend campus. The 22,500 square-foot center will offer student support services like career counseling, internship coordination, academic advising, tutoring, disability access services, veterans support, student health and mental health services. Also to be included are a multicultural center, recreation and gathering spaces, and a home for student organizations and clubs. Construction will begin in 2022, and the center is expected to open in the 2023-24 academic year.
“The Student Success Center is especially critical for underrepresented, first-generation, low-income and rural students who benefit from support services, networking and advising that aid their progress to graduation,” says Andrew Ketsdever, interim vice president at OSU-Cascades.
The center will also help OSU-Cascades keep pace with growing student enrollment, which saw a 27% increase in first-year students and a 16% increase in transfer students in fall 2020. Nearly 60% of OSU-Cascades students come from Central Oregon, and they include:
- 19% students of color.
- 35% Pell Grant-eligible students.
- 28% first-generation students.
The Student Success Center will not only support students, it’s supported by students. Current OSU-Cascades students lobbied state legislators to support funding, and they also voted in 2017 to increase student fees, raising $5 million for the project.
“This investment from students, in a building most of us will never enjoy the opportunity to use, is a testament to the shared commitment by both our campus and the Central Oregon community in supporting success for all students,” says Taha Elwefati, president of the Associated Students of Cascades Campus. “We are dedicated to creating a better tomorrow for future generations of OSU-Cascades students.”
Goals and ambitions should never feel out of reach. OSU-Cascades is making sure they won’t.