Student workshops benefit the college lifestyle

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Workshops help students with stress management.  (Maddi Driggs)
Workshops on time management, note taking, stress management and other topics are taught daily at the Career and Academic Success Center in 2590 WSC. (Maddi Driggs)

Classes are officially underway and the first exams are now in the foreseeable future. Students might find themselves looking for a way to balance their many responsibilities and ease some of the back-to-school stresses.

Employees at the Career & Academic Success Center (CASC) located in the Wilkinson Student Center room 2590 say they have the resources students need to be successful in school. They offer academic and life skills workshops every day of the week covering time and stress management, memory, note taking, textbook comprehension, resume writing and more.

Each workshop is designed specifically for student success, as they are directed by students who have extensive training and are participating in current research on the topics. Students can get constructive help in a productive 50-minute workshop or by appointment in a one-on-one session with a CASC student.

Tony Pratt, a CASC teacher and senior studying neuroscience, said the workshops had a great impact on him.

“I needed help with school at the time, and so I came. CASC offers a course in time management and it was perfect,” Pratt said. “The next day I attended another one and kept coming back until I had attended all eight topics.”

Now that Pratt is a CASC teacher, he said the number one reason he invites students to attend the workshops is memory, or lack thereof.

“Everyone knows what they should do to be successful; it’s not like we’re sharing any secrets. A lot of students just forget those basic things,” Pratt said.

Each workshop is designed to use a variety of teaching methods in an effort to help the basics become committed to memory and meet all attendees needs. The course uses hands-on activities, videos, self-assessments and discussions to appeal to the diversity of student scholars.

Manager of the CASC department and clinical psychologist Lynne A. Bennion, Ph.D., said the courses are structured for the students, by the students. Bennion said no set curriculum inhibits the freedom to tailor the course to best fit the students. She said this tailoring is a result of constructive comments from course participants.

“Feedback is collected at the end of each workshop and the courses are continuously revised and updated to be consistent with current research in an effort to give the best quality workshop for the students,” Bennion said.

Senior and CASC teacher Kate Kuykendall said the course is a way to become the best student possible.

“Workshops help students set realistic expectations for themselves and find ways to better manage everything that is required of them,” Kuykendall said.

For more information, visit the CASC website or visit 2590 in the Wilkinson Student Center.

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