SummerSTART 2016 is a Wrap!

SummerSTART 2016 has officially ended and the 56 new freshmen student-athletes have completed their first courses as NC State students. SummerSTART students completed courses such as COM 110, ENG 100, SOC 202 and PRT 152. Throughout the week, the Undergraduate Tutorial Center (UTC) provided tutoring for students. On Sundays, ASPSA administered study hall and mentoring sessions, including a Grammar Bootcamp one week. In addition to the academic component, SummerSTART provided students with opportunities to volunteer and explore the community. Students visited Carolina Tiger Rescue, built a home with Habitat for Humanity and were able to participate in weekly movie nights. Each student was assigned with a SummerSTART mentor who guided and advised them during their transition to college life.

I checked back in with E. Cassell (women’s basketball), Thad Moss (football) and Charlie Lenox (wrestling), who I interviewed at the beginning of SummerSTART, to get a reflective update on the past month. Last time I spoke with them, they were looking forward to meeting new friends and getting started in their classes. Today when asked about their SummerSTART experiences, E. Cassell and Charlie Lenox were both pleasantly surprised by how friendly the faculty members were to them, easing their transition from high school to college. When asked his most rewarding experience, Thad Moss explained he is really proud of his personal progress in public speaking and his grades. Others agreed with Moss and commented they feel like they’ve become stronger students as well.

While these freshmen are moving onto, and looking forward to, the fall semester, they left some advice for the SummerSTART freshmen next year: read the assigned reading, stay focused, manage your time, and complete your work in the classroom so everything else will fall into place.