wasn’t right for me. But the corporate education world felt like a perfect fit.” The START office includes ad- visers from each campus college, so students can get answers to questions about many different majors in a single location. “Our job is to get students con- nected to resources when they first get here,” said START Direc- tor Andy Beverly. “We’ll suggest faculty members who share similar interests, talk to students about internships and co-ops they might want to seek out in the future and tell them about organizations they may want to join based on what they enjoy.” START advisers assist freshmen and transfer students in getting acclimated to campus. Beverly hopes students will view the office as a place where they can stop in and ask anything, whether it’s advice about academics, help making campus connec- tions, or finding a sympathetic ear to share concerns with. During START’s inaugural year, the office con- ducted more than 4,000 appointments and met with 1,885 students, including Hundley. For the second year, more than 2,000 students are assigned to START advising. “START has given me a solid foundation within the uni- versity and confidence in the choices I’m making about my academic career,” Hundley said. Move ahead. College is a place for students to learn new things, engage with new people, and explore new ideas and concepts. And with the help of a newly created university network, it’s also a place to grow through support- ive educational opportunities. With all student-advising offices in a central location—the University Center—advisers work together to keep struggling students focused on their goals. Sophomore May Daoud is one of the students who has benefited from the office’s advising services. After a lower-than-expected GPA during her first semester, Daoud contacted the Office of Student Success, which offers free one- on-one and group tutoring, success coaching and supplemental instruction. Daoud, who has a mer- it-based Opportunity Scholarship, said she didn’t have to study in high school and made the mistake of expecting she could do the same in college. “I was so embarrassed about my grades that I didn’t know what to do or who to talk to,” she said. “And really, I didn’t want to talk about it. I just wanted to hide from what happened.” At a meeting with Office of Student Success staff, Daoud reflected on the previous semester and came up with a plan for improvement. “No one was demeaning or mad. They just laid it out for me. I would lose my scholarship. I would lose time and mon- ey retaking classes,” she said. “They told me about tutoring, SI [supplemental instruction] and the Math and Writing Center. They told me this in a way that I knew I could trust them and be open with them if I needed help in the future.” Daoud changed her study habits, regularly attended SI sessions and finished her second semester with a 3.2 GPA, just short of the Dean’s List. “I felt my confidence come back,” she said. Level up. Average. That word sums up how Candice Tudor used to feel about her college per- formance and experience. But that’s not the word she’d use anymore. When Talent Gateway Director Laurie Sutch spoke with Tudor in the University Center last fall “START has given me a solid foundation within the university and confidence in the choices I’m making about my academic career.” 10 | Fall 2017 LEVELUP! Check out the Talent Gateway and get more involved in campus activities.