As you walk into Building 10 you will see that in between the Grossmont College Counseling and Transfer Center, you’ll find the First Year Experience program (FYE).
Grossmont College offers tons of resources across campus, and for incoming students it may be hard to navigate. FYE offers an immense amount of help to first-year students with support that ranges from dedicated counselors, learning communities, and the ability to answer any question you may have.
We had the opportunity to speak with Jordan Cummings, a forensic science major and a former FYE student turned FYE mentor.
Cummings hopes to finish her forensic degree at Grossmont College, begin interning in her field and get a bachelor’s in chemistry at San Diego State University.
How were you first introduced to FYE?
“At my high school (Patrick Henry High School), Grossmont College had outreach come and help us out with applications. There were some FYE mentors there and they told me ‘Because you are applying you should also sign up for this program. It is a first-year program and will be there for you if you need any help.’ At the time I thought that I might as well sign up for it, what do I have to lose.”
How did First Year Experience help you?
“It helped me build connections on campus. I would’ve not gotten my FYE mentor position if I wasn’t a part of the program. Just interacting with my mentors, meeting with counselors helped me out in the sense that I had people I could trust on campus when I had an issue going on. It was also really nice because when I would stress about meeting with a counselor, I could text my mentors and she would make an appointment for me.”
What made you want to start working with the program as a mentor?
“Honestly, I wasn’t thinking about work at all. It was during COVID quarantine and I thought nobody would want to be hiring, if anything I was hearing people were being fired instead of hired. When I filled out my application to the college, I put that I was interested in work study. But I didn’t know what any of that was. Then during one of my last counseling appointments that semester they told me that they thought I would be perfect for this position, here I am thinking it is a volunteer thing and saying ‘yeah, I would love to’. Then she said it was paid. I was like ‘whatttt.’ Now, I am super glad I made the decision and can help students.”
What do you hope to achieve while working there?
“When you help students when they are super stressed, taking that weight off their shoulders is just a really nice feeling. I’m helping these students and then I get to see them succeed.”
Anything you would like to add?
“When you start college, you think you are very alone in the sense that you have to figure everything out by yourself, especially if you don’t have family that has gone to college. I think our program is a good thing to have in your back pocket. I went to my mentor a lot and sometimes it was just to talk. It is always good to have that person you can reach out to.”