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CCSU Counseling and
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MAN-ENOUGH Are you man enough? Do you feel that you have limited resources and supports to help you to be successful as a college student? Do you lack clear understanding about what you must do or what it will take for you to graduate? Are you on or at risk of academic probation? Do you feel like giving up or quitting because the college experience has been overwhelming for you?
The
Man-Enough support
group will provide a comfortable, supportive forum where men can openly
discuss their concerns, personal challenges, and issues related to being a
man in a college community. The focus of this support group is to help men
better understand themselves as they confront the pressures and challenges
of being “man enough”. The group is open to both undergraduate and graduate
male students. This support group was created to address: · Provide emotional, personal, and academic support through the use of faculty/staff and community based mentoring and advising. · Improve health factors for men that will lead to enrollment sustainability. · Confront barriers impeding retention and degree completion of male students on the CCSU campus. · Identify and decrease risk factors impeding overall student success (e.g., disciplinary, alcohol, academic, etc.) · Educate the CCSU community about issues affecting men on campus. · Provide resources and service linkages to help student remain engaged and navigate the complexities of the college experience. MEN’S SUPPORT GROUP MEETING: Mondays TIME: 5:00 - 6:0 0 p.m. LOCATION: Women’s Center Living Room (Student Center)
For more information about joining, please call William Fothergill (Counseling & Wellness Center) (860) 832-1945 Man Enough exists as a collaboration between the Counseling & Wellness Center, The Advising Center, and the Office of Recruitment & Admissions
Are You Man Enough Assessment? Health and wellness factors have been shown to be the greatest barriers to college retention and graduation rates. The Man-Enough assessment has been compiled to help male college student to identify the risk factors that could interfere with retention and their successful degree completion. Respond to each question with a yes or no answer. Upon completion, turn the assessment card over to get the fact about each question. 1. Do you feel
overwhelmed by the expectations of others (e.g., partner, family,
society)? 2. Has the
college experience been stressful for you?
3. Do you have difficulty following
through with your educational responsibilities (e.g., class attendance,
assignments, meeting class deadlines, being prepared, and (or) seeking
out help)? 4. Do you lack
a clear certainty about your major or do you lack a clear understanding
of what you must do or what it will take to reach degree
completion?
5.
Are you a first generation college student?
6. Are you
negatively affected by any of the following: procrastination, poor
organization and time management skills, low motivation, and (or) do you
over extend yourself. 7. Do you feel
that you have limited resources and supports to help you to be
successful as a college student? 8. Are you or
has someone else been concerned about any area of you overall since of
wellbeing (e.g., adjusting to college, sleeplessness, behavioral
changes, difficulty concentration, or indecisiveness, etc.)? 9. Are you on or
at-risk of academic probation?
10. Do you
frequently consume five or more alcoholic beverages on the same
occasion, with the sole objective of getting drunk? 11. Do you have
financial concerns that may interfere with your ability to stay in
college? Scoring & Assessment: If you answered yes to any of the questions you should consider joining the Man Enough Support Group. The group has been designed as a vehicle to address common areas impeding the success of male college student. The group will offer the necessary supports that have been proven to support retention and successful degree completion. The first eight questions were created as response to factors identified in the College Success Factor Index. These areas have been shown to be essential to academic aptitude, retention, and graduation rates of college students. The questions were created to respond to each of the factors areas that have been deemed as crucial to student success. The eight factors are (1) Expectation, (2) Competition, (3) Responsibility vs. Control, (4) Task Precision, (5) Time Management, (6) College Involvement, (7) Family Involvement, and (8) Wellness. Questions (9-11) were created to assess four areas drawn from research that significantly influence college success for male students (i.e., disciplinary issues, academic status, and alcohol binge drinking, and economic and financial status of students). A yes answer to any of the questions in this assessment may put you at risk. Take a proactive step towards a successful college experience. If you answered no to all of the questions, the Man Enough Support Group may still be a valuable resource to you. It may provide you with a growth opportunity that will most likely enhance your personal and collegiate experience. For more information contact the Counseling & Wellness Center (860) 832-1945 FACTS 1. Expectations Do you feel overwhelmed by the expectations of others (e.g., partner, family, society)? Believe it or not, but men are under a great deal of pressure to achieve at school and at work. Men are working significant more hours, which pulls him away from those more healthy components of life. The culture towards men many times supports the notion of competition. Society imposes the status of manhood based on achievement levels (e.g., a soldier is a real man but a pacifist is weak). The pressure to succeed and be the best can have a crippling effect on his personal and academic performance. 2. Competition Has the college experience been stressful for you? A study of university students’ (Nannini, Hallberg, Sauer, 1988) indicated that competition was the highest rated stress area. If you can identify with any of the symptoms below, please go back and answer the question again. General symptoms of stress shown by college students are as followed. Nervousness, fatigue, insomnia, lack of concentration, excessive sweating, neck or lower back pain, smoking or drug addiction, nightmares, loss or excessive appetite might all be more evident symptoms in a student. Migraines, headaches, mystery stomach and body pain are some of the physical symptoms that enhance the college stress. Rigidity and lack of flexibility was found to be characteristic of students who dropped out of school (Jones, 1955). Students who create clear goals and establish realistic expectations for themselves are more successful in college. 3. Responsibility vs. control Do you have difficulty following through with your educational responsibilities (e.g., class attendance, assignments, meeting class deadlines, being prepared, and (or) seeking out help)? College success is greatly influenced by a student’s ability to accept the responsibility for his academic progress and success. The ultimate goal of this process is for the student to assume responsibility in an intrinsic capacity. Studies have shown (Schmelzer & Schmelzer, 1987), that student success factors are negatively impacted by a student’s belief that their professor or others may have a greater degree of influence over their college performance. For example, when a student thinks or says, “why didn’t the professor remind me about that assignment” or “just because I don’t attend class she has no right to lower my grade”. Taking responsibility and control over factors that may affect the outcome of a student’s academic success are crucial to the type of college experience a student may have. 4. Task Precision Do you lack a clear certainty about your major or do you lack a clear understanding of what you must do or what it will take to reach degree completion? A student’s outlook about their college experience and the effort they exhibit are important and influential factors relating to their overall college success. A student’s expectation directly relates to the persistence he will exhibit towards any given task. Doubt and lack of assurance can negatively impact commitment levels and persistence. In so many words, what you put into any given experience will greatly impact the output or outcome. 5. Family Involvement Are you a first generation college student? Research indicates that students whose parents did not attend college are more likely than their non first-generation counterparts to be less academically prepared for college, to have less knowledge of how to apply for college and for financial assistance, and to have more difficulty in acclimating themselves to college once they enroll. They are also more at risk for not completing a degree because they are more likely to delay enrollment after high school, to enroll in postsecondary education part-time, and to work full-time while enrolled. Family involvement factors can also be used to predict college success. The level and degree in which parents (guardians or significant parental figures) can engage with the student on the college experience has been shown to affect success outcome measures. For example, student who remain in college are more likely to come from homes where parents are more educated and from families that are able to provide more support, advice, and encouragement. (Trent & Ryle, 1965; Chase, 1970; Cope & Hewitt, 1970; Hackman & Dysinger, 1970; and Spady, 1971) Carmen Tym, Robin McMillion, Sandra Barone, Jeff Webster: First-Generation College Students: A Literature Review, November 12, 2004 6. Time Management Are you negatively affected by any of the following: procrastination, poor organization and time management skills, low motivation, and (or) do you over extend yourself. The proper use and management of time is crucial to a student’s success in college. Everyone has access to 24 hours in a day. It is not the amount of time that creates problems for many students, but it is more accurately how they utilize the time given. Timely work completion has a direct bearing on grades and ultimately graduation. Studies have demonstrated the relationship between effective time management and academic successful (Astin, 1936; Schmelzer & Schmelzer, 1987). 7. College Involvement Do you feel that you have limited resources and supports to help you to be successful as a college student? Studies have shown that one of the primary predictor of student success is the extent to which they feel connected to the university. 37% of students who leave college reported they did not feel connected to the college. Retention success resides in the work of faculty and in the institution’s capacity to construct educational communities that actively engage students in learning. College involvement is a strong predictor of college success. College involvement can incorporate the following: living on campus, campus based employment, friendships, extra-curricular activities, campus based supports and resources, cultural bases programming, and faculty/staff interaction and engagement. (Astin, 1984; Spady, 1970, 1971; Scott, 1971; Rock 1971; Tinto, 1975; Witt & Handal, 1984) 8. Wellness Are you or has someone else been concerned about any area of you overall since of wellbeing (e.g., adjusting to college, sleeplessness, behavioral changes, difficulty concentration, or indecisiveness, etc.)? Recent studies have shown that men are chronically under-diagnosed for depression and other mental diseases. In part, this is due to the fact that men are far less likely to seek psychological counseling than are women. Many men have been taught to believe that therapy is unmanly. Depression, anxiety, stress, and burnout are all factors that impede college success and student attrition (Pantages & Creedon, 1974). Additionally, the private psychotherapeutic community, in many cases, steers away from men who are perceived as unstable or threatening. Men are far more likely than women to be referred away from private care and to public mental health clinics, which are generally understaffed and underfunded." Depression is a serious medical condition that affects the body, mood, and thoughts. (The Men's Health Network. 2002. http://www.menshealthnetwork.org/ProgramAreas/Therapy.html) 9. Academic Status Are you on or at-risk of academic probation? Students who earn probation are retained and graduate at significantly lower rates than non-probation students. In most cases within the first three semesters, students who earn probation after the 1st fall make-up over 30 to 40% of the students who stopped-out or dropped-out in a particular semester. In terms of graduation, only 5% of students who earn probation (ever) graduate within 4 years as compared to 50% of students who do not earn probation. 31% of students who earn probation (ever) graduate within 6 years as compared to 83% of students who do not earn probation. 10. Binge Drinking Do you frequently consume five or more alcoholic beverages on the same occasion, with the sole objective of getting drunk? Binge drinking has been defined as dinking five or more alcoholic beverages on the same occasion, with the sole objective being to get drunk. Frequent binge drinkers were eight times more likely than non-binge drinkers to miss a class, fall behind in schoolwork, get hurt or injured, and damage property. More than 60 percent of college men who are frequent binge drinkers report that they drink and drive. All of these factors are major contributors to the lack of success of male college students. 11. Financial Do you have financial concerns that may interfere with your ability to stay in college? Students, especially low-income students, face daunting challenges in entering and succeeding inhigher education (Terenzini, Cabrera & Bernal, 2001; Postsecondary Education Opportunity, n.d.; U.S. Department of Education, 2006). In one national study of non-completers, students who received Pell grants (typically the lowest-income students) were more likely than other students to report that their debt burden was a critical factor in the decision to stop attending (Baum & O’Malley, 2003). Working more hours, having less time to devote to studying, participating less fully in out-of-class college life, and being less well prepared academically may all lead lower-income students to struggle with college course work. In short, there is much evidence to suggest that families’ inexperience with higher education and the challenges of scarcer financial resources can affect low-income students negatively. Baum, S. and O’Malley, M. (2003). College on credit: how borrowers perceive their education debt; Nellie Mae Corporation. Braintree, MA.; Terenzini, P.T., A. F. Cabrera, and E.M. Bernal. (2001). Swimming against the tide: the poor in American higher education. College Board Publications: New York, NY. Every Wednesday
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