State and local lawmakers, students, and SUNY officials this past month joined Rockland Community College leaders in highlighting the benefits and expansion of the Advancing Success in Associate Pathways (ASAP) a transformative two-year model that has been widely demonstrated to increase student completion rates and narrow opportunity gaps.
“We are thrilled to bring the ASAP program to Rockland Community College as a vital component of our commitment to student success and retention,” said Beth A. Coyle, RCC Officer in Charge. “The resources provided by ASAP will empower students to overcome challenges and achieve their goals, ultimately driving economic growth and industry development in the region.”
“Student success drives everything we do at SUNY, and we are committed to meeting students and their families where they are to ensure they thrive,” said SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. “SUNY takes pride in scaling ASAP and ACE as proven models for student success across our campuses and we look forward to continuing to invest in the next generation of SUNY graduates at Rockland Community College and across the system.”
Rockland Community College is one of 25 SUNY campuses statewide that opted in to the ASAP|ACE program and as of this fall will enroll 150 students to improve retention and graduation rates.
ASAP|ACE provides wraparound support to ensure student academic success, retention, and on-time graduation. An array of resources and supports – including funding to cover textbooks, groceries, transportation, and other costs of attendance, academic assistance, comprehensive personalized advisement, and career development activities – help Pell-eligible students overcome barriers that can prevent them from achieving their goals and obtaining a degree.
ASAP|ACE expanded to the SUNY system in Spring 2024, supported by an historic demonstration of state-level support championed by Governor Hochul in the $75 million SUNY Transformation Fund and supplemented by private grants. In Fall 2024, SUNY ASAP|ACE will enroll 4,200 students.
Participating students represent a wide range of backgrounds, interests, and experience, but all share a recognition in the importance of higher education and achieving a degree to achieve their personal and professional goals. See here for more information: https://www.suny.edu/asap-ace/.
“I am very happy for the program, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for it. Being part of it is truly special to me. Thank you for everything,” said Natalia Benitez Levina, a current ASAP student at Rockland Community College.
Since being initially launched at CUNY in 2007, ASAP|ACE have served more than 100,000 CUNY students and the programs have been replicated in seven states. The ASAP|ACE programs have been proven to significantly improve degree completion rates, particularly for underrepresented students. They have since been replicated at more than 20 colleges in seven states across the nation.
To learn more about ASAP at Rockland Community College, visit https://sunyrockland.edu/services/asap/ or contact Ian Pena at ian.pena@sunyrockland.edu.
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