One of the biggest problems (as identified by EAP level 4 Writing students last year) students face at JCCC is enrollment. That makes sense. It’s the first big step – and the first interaction with JCCC as an institution. Mass enrollment can be chaotic, and the student workers who make first contact with prospective or returning students walking in to the Advising and counseling office might not understand the nuances and unique challenges faced by NNS and / or international students; therefor students need to know how to advocate for themselves, because a face-to-face meeting with a JCCC Counselor can make a big difference in successful enrollment.
JCCC uses the term “counselor” to refer to someone who does advising, which might confuse students coming from schools that use the following definitions.
Counselors are professionally trained to address personal issues, resolve academic anxieties, assist students in choosing career fields and majors, and problem solve other academic difficulties. With students on restricted academic or financial aid status, counselors work to develop individual success plans, which address the specific issues inhibiting academic success.
Advisors specialize in matters pertaining to your educational program: college policies, placement/assessment test interpretation, degree requirements, transferability, schedule planning, and graduation checks. Faculty performs ongoing advising. Every effort is made to match degree seeking students with faculty from areas of particular interest to the individual advisee. Source
Some research argues that counselors make better advisors than faculty, which might explain the choice of titles. All JCCC counselors are caring individuals willing to help students in anyway possible. Here at JCCC, counselors do advising; but if you tell them you need emotional support, they can put you in contact with the proper resources. Just because you see a counselor at JCCC, it doesn’t mean you are getting “counseling” for mental problems. It’s just the term we use. The focus of this post is on how to enroll in classes.
One of the most experienced Counselors in working with NNS and International students at JCCC is Bruce Harvey. He explains,
all counselors are generalists with special areas of knowledge that we share with each other. Over the years the counseling group as a whole has become more familiar with certain processes ( for example I-20 extensions) that come up frequently or discussions about whether to stay or drop a course and how it might impact INS status.
So you don’t necessarily need to meet with one of the following people, but EAP student satisfaction in advising is higher with these people.
Gloria Rosso.
Gloria has the endorsement of the Chair of the EAP department and has visited my class. She’s wonderfully personable, with a Masters in Psychology and years of experience at JCCC. She comes original from Columbia, and she speaks Spanish as a native language.
Dave Ellis. Dave comes highly recommended from several sources. He’s been at JCCC for a long time and knows how things work.
Further resources: Larry Yocum and Casey Buchanan have also been recommended, but Casey is currently on sabbatical and isn’t available to help students this semester.
