Welcome Back to The Beach!
Dear SI Campus Partners,
We hope that you had a great Winter break and your semester is off to a positive start! Our dedicated staff have been working hard to prepare for another amazing semester.
One of the SI Coordinators' goals starting this semester is to send you a newsletter at the beginning and end of every semester with updates, news, and other announcements. This edition of the SI Campus Newsletter will provide updates and announcements regarding the SI staff, our new location on campus, and more.
Thank you for your ongoing support of SI! We are so excited to work with you this semester as we continue supporting our students. If you ever want to check-in, please know that our office is always open, and we're always happy to sit down and catch up!
All the best,
Lyndsay, Timurhan, and Lori Joy
Meet the Current SI Team
Lyndsay Harrison: Coordinator, SI
Lyndsay is returning from her maternity leave in Fall 2018 and is excited to start her 16th semester of leading SI with her new (nerdy) coordinating team! Lyndsay oversees all aspects of the SI program, including scheduling, faculty and admin outreach, and development of the student SI Leaders.
She is a product of CSU Long Beach, where she served as a student assistant while earning her Bachelors in Human Development. After graduation, she worked as an Adviser prior to becoming the SI Coordinator in Fall 2011.
Timurhan Vengco: Coordinator, SI
In October 2018, Timurhan Vengco was hired as the 2nd Coordinator for the SI program! In collaboration with Lyndsay, Timurhan will oversee all aspects of the SI program, including hiring and training the current SI Leaders, assessment, and scheduling.
Timurhan and his wife are making their return to Southern California after spending 6 years in the SF Bay Area for school and Work. He spent the past two years serving as the Program Services Coordinator for Skyline College's SI Program. Prior to that, he coordinated a transfer/advising support program at Cañada College and worked as the part-time assistant director of SF State University's nighttime tutoring program. He earned his Bachelor's degree at UC Riverside and is currently finishing his thesis for his Master's in English Literature .
Lori Joy Patricio: Associate Coordinator, SI
Lori Joy was hired as the Associate Coordinator for SI in January 2018. She has been attached to CSULB's SI program throughout her collegiate career. In addition to pursuing her Bachelor's in Mathematics and Master's in Applied Mathematics, she also served as a SI Leader and a SI Mentor. Her work focuses greatly on training and supporting the current SI Leaders, collecting data, and managing the SI website and BeachBoard pages.
SI and The Learning Assistance Center Relocates to the Student Success Center!
As some of you may have already heard, the Learning Assistance Center has gone through some big changes over the Winter break!
(1) The Learning Assistance Center is no longer located in the Horn Center, as the LAC moved into the new Student Success Center (formerly PH2) on upper campus. We are excited about being more centrally located on campus and having a new space that will make it easier to provide high-quality academic support services to students.
(2) In addition to a new location, the Learning Assistance Center will be changing its name to The Learning Center. This decision comes from student, staff, faculty, and administrator feedback, and we hope that the name promotes a more positive and inclusive environment that meets our students' diverse needs. The Learning Center is currently in the process of updating its website and outreach to reflect the name change.
Recap of SI's Spring 2019 Orientation
It takes a lot for a SI Leader to feel ready for the new semester! The SI Program hired 13 new SI Leaders and welcomed back 21 returning SI leaders. In order to support the professional growth of the student staff, the SI team underwent a full, 4-day training on Tuesday, January 15 - Friday, January 18. The first day of training focuses on the history of SI and best practices for providing collaborative, peer-to-peer academic support. The following days then focus on interactive workshops on strategies for working with students and provide SI Leaders multiple opportunities to practice these strategies in simulated SI sessions. The orientation covered topics such as:
- The history and structure of SI
- Facilitating collaborative learning activities
- Promoting students' development as independent learners
- Professionalism and Communication
- CSULB Resources
The entire team was engaged and active throughout the week, and the SI Leaders are excited to start working with all of your students!
The SI Team to Present at the 45th Annual ACTLA Conference
The Learning Center will be sending the SI Team to present at the 45th annual conference of the Association of Colleges for Tutoring and Learning Assistance at Las Vegas in April. The theme of the conference is “What Happens in the Learning Center Leaves the Learning Center,” which recognizes learning assistance programs’ goals to develop independent student learners by helping them improve their understanding of subject content, foster critical thinking, and strengthen study skills.
The SI Team's presentation is titled "Surfing through BeachBoard: Digitalizing SI Program Coordination with a Learning Management System." They will provide a a live demonstration of how SI utilizes BeachBoard to coordinate the SI program. Topics include organizing a course shell, tracking weekly SI paperwork, providing feedback on SI materials, and centralizing vital resources for the SI Leaders.
The SI Team is excited to share and learn best practices for supporting students and represent California State University, Long Beach!
Contact Us
The SI team values the opportunity to collaborate and work with our campus community. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any feedback about the program or are interested in current happenings!