Student Success Scholars Program
The Student Success Scholars Program is a program designed to assist students with their overall experience at Stockton University.
Let us help you:
- get organized
- better manage your time
- develop your academic and career goals
- become an autonomous learner
- empower you to succeed
The Program aims to help students navigate and maximize the benefits of various academic and student life resources available at Stockton and includes individualized mentoring by Stockton faculty and staff and trained peer mentors.
When you join the program you will be assigned a personal mentor or a peer mentor who will work with you. The Program requires at least one face-to-face meeting and weekly updates via phone, texting, or email with your mentor.
Students must bring all relevant materials to their meeting including class syllabi and notes.
Your mentor can refer you to any appropriate services on campus that will help you reach your objectives.
Please complete the application below to join as a program participant
Featured Mentee
Janus Liu 21'
Major: Biochemistry and Environmental Science
Minor: Business Studies
Volunteer Work: I have volunteered with Clean Ocean Action to help with Brick Beach Cleanups in college. I also did some reading to children and making crafts with seniors at the Brick Library.
Student Organizations: Environmental Club, Pathways to Healing
Career Goal: Either a job at a nature park or herbal medicine center
Favorite thing about Stockton: I love walking around the campus looking at the trees and listening to the birds. The campus is very quiet and peaceful.
Why I joined the SSS program: College was continuing to become more difficult, and I was struggling with some of the class materials for my science classes. The Student Success Scholars Program helped me plan better communication with my professors about ways to improve my studying for exams, and my mentor helped point me in the right direction when I was not sure what to do about academic and financial resources. The workshops and talking with my mentor helped me develop good study strategies to learn the material and helped me build better communication skills with people so that I could talk about difficult things in the class work that I had been struggling with.
Successful Experience: The Student Success Scholars Program has been an amazing experience that has helped shape me into a better and more well-rounded student. As college reaches its end, I am hoping to maybe work on mentoring other students and maybe work on some community service learning and apply for internships.
Featured Peer Mentor
Hari Acharya
Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (Graduation: 2023)
Volunteer Work: I'm a tutor for Stockton's Homework Assistance Program at the Pleasantville Library
(and Zoom!), as well as a Peer-Mentor for the Honors Program and the Student Success
Scholars Program!
Student organizations: I'm the President and Founder of the Pre-Medical Club of Stockton University (@PMCSU
on Instagram!), a member of Stockton's Honors Program, and an Active Member of Delta
Epsilon Mu!
Post Graduate Interest or Career Goal: After graduating I plan to apply to medical school and pursue my dreams of becoming
a physician! My dream medical school is Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
in Camden and I'm still deciding on a specialty as I continue to learn more and more
every day.
Favorite thing about Stockton: My favorite thing about Stockton is the people. Everyone from my friends to the faculty has had a large influence on helping me grow into the best version of myself. I couldn't have asked for a more supportive environment. Not only has this helped me do well but it's also what allows me to continue to help others reach their goals as well. (Shoutout: Dr. Burleigh, Dr. Rajaraman, Dr. Colon, Dr. Brown, Dr. Pollock, Dr. Schroer, and Mr. Itaas!)
Why I joined the Student Success Scholars Program (3S) as Peer Mentor: I joined the Student Succes Scholars Program as a Peer-Mentor to reach and help more of my peers succeed. Efficiently prioritizing your tasks and creating a framework for your goals is essential to one's overall academic success, as well as creating a memorable college experience. I would help many of my friends and classmates overcome gaps in their learning by showing them the methods that worked for me in order to help them perform the best they possibly could. I have always believed in the idea of sharing knowledge and information that can help someone. I felt that I can reach more of my peers and help more students succeed with the help of the Student Success Scholars Program.
Featured Peer Mentor
Calli Votta
Major: Master of Social Work student and graduate intern (Graduation: 2023)
Volunteer Work: I volunteered on creating a project to donate care 230 packages for the Atlantic City Rescue Mission. Stockton's Student Success Scholars Program and the MSW Alliance helped raise awareness for this project throughout Stockton. I volunteered at the Community Food Bank NJ working in the food pantry!
Student Organization(s): I am the MSW Alliance Vice President, graduate assistant working with a faculty member on a research study, Psi Chi member, National Society of Leadership and Success member, and Disney College Program alum (I worked at Walt Disney World in Magic Kingdom).
Post Graduate Interest or Career Goal: After graduating, I want to work in a macro-level organization to help others who witnessed traumatic events. My area of interests are mental health (domestic violence and suicidology) and eating disorders. I hope to create projects focusing on these interests and seeing a change in our community.
Favorite thing(s) about Stockton: My favorite thing is the offered programs and community. Stockton has so many different programs and opportunities to get involved in. I have gained much experience in my field from Stockton's opportunities. The community involving my classmates and the faculty members helped encourage me to get the most out of my college experience. I would not be the person, I am today, without Stockton's offered programs and community.
Why I joined Stockton's Student Success Scholars Program (3S) as a Peer Mentor: I joined Stockton's Student Success Scholars Program as a Peer Mentor to help inspire others that it is possible for them to succeed. College is a different experience for every student and I want to be their cheerleader through all the ups and downs. Before I came to Stockton, going to college was not a priority for me, but I am so glad that my mindset changed and went for it! I helped guide many friends through pritorizing effective time management skills throughout their college experience. Stockton's Student Success Scholars Program gives me the opportunitity to help guide students to succeed in their future goals.
Featured Peer Mentor
Rose Shaw
Major: Communications Studies: Public Relations and Marketing (Graduation: 2023)
Volunteer Work: I am a Peer Mentor for the Student Success Scholars Program. I also volunteered to be part of a research project for a health science graduate student.
Student Organization(s): I am the Secretary of Stockton Unversity's chapter of Publis Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). I am also a sometime-active member of the Gardening Club, Marketing Club, the Economic Society, the First Ospreys Club, and the Stockton Foosers.
Post Graduate Interest or Career Goals: After graduating from Stockton, I plan to apply to Rutgers University for graduate school to get my Masters in Communications and Media. My ultimate career goal is to become a college professor in the Communications field.
Favorite thing about Stockton: Stockton is great because I commute. Actually, it offers a chance at having rewarding new educational experiences. (the short commute is not bad either).
Why I joined Student Success Scholars Program (3S) as a Peer Mentor: I joined Student Success Scholars Program as a Peer Mentor because I answered the call. Really! I feel most at home helping people. If I am able, I step in. I spent a lot of my time in high school realizing I liked being the person that stepped in and helped. I tutored and volunteered a lot, and realized that I enjoyed it. Knowing that other people were succeeding, learning, and growing because of me felt humbling, and it still does. I put in the time and effort in the hopes that one day someone who I helped and mentored will be in the position to help and mentor others, so they can also discover how wonderful it feels to help others.
Featured Faculty/ Staff Mentor
Name/Position: Guia Calicdan-Apostle, Associate Professor of Social Work
Education: Doctorate in Social Work (Clinical Social Work), School of Social Policy and Practice, University of Pennsylvania (2011); Master of Science in Social Work, Asian Social Institute (1994).
Work Experience: Before coming to Stockton, I was a school social worker in the poorest county of New Jersey. I also worked in a refugee camp, state prison, facilities for the disabled, aging, and mental health. I ran a program on American Stop Smoking Study for the Prevention of Cancer (ASSIST), an NIH-funded program in the 1990s.
Interest/hobbies: I play guitar and banduria, cook international food esp. vegan recipes, forest walk, and if more time is available, travel to places where tourists do not often go.
Favorite albums: What's Going On by Marvin Gaye; Amor a La Mexicana by Thalia
Favorite things about Stockton: The pedagogy on liberal arts education, the strong faculty and staff, and their commitment to service to the university and the community. Stockton is strategically located in the pinelands and near the ocean.
Why I joined the Student Success Scholars Program as a mentor: When I was in college, it took one faculty to tell me that I could do it. That statement strengthened my belief that I could change my life out of poverty through education. It just makes sense to keep the ball rolling by becoming a mentor to someone who needs encouragement. In the words of a Persian educator, "little by little, day by day." That little encouragement that I received when I was 19 years old has been a part of my story of completing the highest formal education in social work.
Featured Faculty/Staff Mentor
Name/Position: Laurie A. Griscom, Executive Director of Event Services & Campus Engagement.
Education: Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership, Master of Arts in Student Personnel Services, Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education/ Spanish Coordinate Major.
Work Experience: Dr. Griscom served in a variety of roles within the Division of Student Affairs since her 1998 arrival to Stockton University. Her doctoral dissertation research project was titled, "Parental Perspectives on Student Preparedness to Self-Manage Food Allergy at College: A Quantitative Study."
Interests/Hobbies: Spending time with family, listening to classical music, and playing pool; also a cat lover!
Favorite things about Stockton: Being able to say, "Now is a really exciting time to be at Stockton," continually over the past 20+ years as Stockton has grown.
Why I joined Student Success Scholars Program as a mentor: To help students feel supported and to help connect them with the many programs, services, and resources that Stockton has to offer.
