30 years of success stories with Access and Success
By Ella Tracy
Access and Success celebrated their 30-year anniversary last week on Wednesday, Sept. 27, hosting an open house to honor three decades of rich history supporting pregnant and parenting students. For the 22% of St. Kate’s students who are pregnant or parenting, this office is a vital resource, having supported over 9,000 students since its opening in 1993.
The department also celebrated 30 years with refreshments and cake.
During the celebratory open house, activities such as face painting and temporary tattoos were available to visitors. Archived newsletters, success stories and newspaper articles were also featured. Associate Dean of Students Lindsay Whipple, University President ReBecca Roloff, Access and Success Director Beth Hamer, several student-parent alumni and former and current staff members spoke during a short program.
“The resources from Access and Success were key for me to succeed while going to school,” one student-parent said. Other parents echoed the importance of the office’s support systems by sharing how they felt welcomed at St. Kate’s. Many also spoke about how they grew as students and parents by working with social workers and knew they had reliable support through every step of their educational journey.
Director Beth Hamer presents during the Access and Success Open House.
The Access and Success office is located in the basement of the library. They are staffed by four social workers: Director Beth Hamer, Julie Lapointe, Ryan Donnelly and Meghan Jackson, as well as three student workers. “The model we’ve had for years is relationships plus resources equals retention,” said Hamer. Hamer expressed the office’s emphasis on facilitating student-parents’ relationships with each other and staff members so no parent feels alone.
The office features a play-study space so children can play while their parent studies nearby. Parents can check out activity backpacks for their children to use while in meetings or classes. There are also breakout rooms where parents and children can meet one-on-one with social workers.
A play place for children is located adjacent to a parent study room.
Access and Success also began giving emergency grants to any student with basic needs emergencies in 2017 in addition to their work with student-parents. They have helped 1,205 students since the beginning of the program, giving those students over $483,000 in emergency assistance.
This year, St. Kate’s received national recognition for their exceptional work. The University was chosen to receive a FamilyU Seal designation from Generation Hope, which is a national certification that honors higher education institutions for work with student-parents. Hamer said, “Receiving the FamilyU Seal designation is a wonderful accompaniment to St. Kate’s Access and Success office celebration of our 30th year supporting pregnant and parenting students. We are one of 13 organizations across the U.S. chosen from a competitive field of candidates.” This distinguishment is a symbol of Access and Success’s continued commitment to supporting student-parents for the next 30 years and beyond.
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Visit the program’s website to read more about the specific resources Access and Success offers. To learn more or connect with the office, email accessandsuccess@stkate.edu.
