December 17, 2023
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IVCC to host 1-day program to help ease new students

Get Set Spring24 focuses on startup essentials, time-management strategies

By Shaw Local News Network
Registration has opened for Illinois Valley Community College’s college readiness program, Get Set, which will be offered to new students as a single-day session in January. Get Set's medley of start-up essentials, time-management strategies, application of campus technology and useful resources has prepared nearly 50 students since 2022.

Registration has opened for Illinois Valley Community College’s college readiness program, Get Set, which will be offered to new students as a single-day session in January. Get Set's medley of start-up essentials, time-management strategies, application of campus technology and useful resources has prepared nearly 50 students since 2022. (Photo provided by IVCC Community Relations)

An abbreviated version of Illinois Valley Community College’s unique college readiness program, Get Set, will be offered in January as students prepare to begin spring semester classes.

Get Set Spring24 will be a one-day instruction on college startup essentials and time-management strategies that helps ease students into their college studies.

Students get logged into campus technology programs; make sense of textbooks, class formats and schedules; and are introduced to useful resources.

The grant-funded course is free and open to new IVCC students enrolled in 2024, including newly minted high school graduates and adults turning or returning to college.

Enrollees agree to attend the session in person and meet with mentors as the semester progresses, and those who complete those requirements earn monetary incentives.

The class will meet from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 9. Students can reserve one of the 15 seats available by enrolling by Jan. 5.

“We’ve seen the course build competence, confidence and connection. All three are a big deal in college success and retention,” coordinator Tina Hardy said in a news release. “The one-day schedule delivers ‘a quick shot’ of some of the most important college knowledge tips and strategies from the weeklong session. In the past, we’ve seen big gains in computer/technology skills on day one.”

This year’s schedule customizes the Get Set experience and involves the mentors more, Hardy said. It allows mentors to spend more time with students during the semester, delivering individual test-taking and note-taking strategies and other curriculum when students can apply them in class.

Mentors help seal the student-college bond, she said.

College can overwhelm when students realize that expectations for them are different from high school, Hardy said. They’re expected to be independent learners, manage their time, initiate and complete tasks, and adapt to different technology.

“And it’s important to know what your support network looks like and how to access resources,” she said.

About 50 students from throughout the IVCC district have taken the course since it began in 2022. Graduates endorse the program, saying it prepared them for college, helped them to keep up strong GPAs, and gave them confidence to enroll the next semester.

Drew Knipper, an IVCC 21st Century Scholar and student government vice president, recently extolled Get Set’s virtues before a group of prospective students.

“It gave me the confidence to walk into school on the first day without worrying about how to access technology, who to ask questions or how to get help,” Knipper said in a news release. “Get Set pushed me to get involved. I believe anyone who has the opportunity to enroll in the class should.”

For information or to register, visit ivcc.edu/readysetgo or call Hardy at 815-224-0284.