When Hugues Ingabire arrived at SMCC last year, he got a running start before the fall semester even began by attending an intensive summer program to prepare him for college life. He and other students in the MySuccess program also received scholarships and the support of a dedicated success coach whose job is to guide them through completion of their college degree.

The MySuccess program has been so successful that SMCC this summer is offering a similar scholarship program called Summer Academy on both our Midcoast Campus in Brunswick and South Portland Campus. Summer Academy offers eligible students a free intensive college prep experience to help them set college and career goals and prepare them for college-level courses in Math and English. Students will be introduced to campus life, explore SMCC’s many degree programs, and receive a scholarship award toward their fall semester.

We know that students who participate in an in-depth orientation introducing them to college life and college academics are more likely to succeed and graduate. Just ask Hugues, whose experience is testament to how effective it can be.

Hugues credits much of the success he enjoyed his first year in college to the MySuccess program and the introduction last summer when he and other students in the program came to campus each day for two weeks before the fall semester started.

Those two weeks allowed him to familiarize himself with SMCC and take Math and English courses that would help him once the academic year began. He learned about all the resources the college has to offer, and got to know staff members he could turn to for help.

“By the time classes began in the fall, I felt like I had already been here for years,” he says with his big, infectious smile.

During his first year in college, Hugues did well in class and also took part in our Emerging Leaders Program, which helps students develop leadership skills. This coming fall, he will be a peer mentor for the incoming class of first-year MySuccess students.

Our new Summer Academy program can help newly accepted students succeed, much the way the MySuccess program has helped Hugues. The three-week program will help students test into and succeed in college-level courses, provide scholarship money, and offer a great opportunity to become part of a close-knit group of students.

To become a member of Summer Academy, students should apply to SMCC (www.smccME.edu/apply), take the Accuplacer placement test and then complete the SMCC Summer Academy application, which can be found at www.smccME.edu/summer-academy.

Starting off college on the right foot can make all the difference toward academic success. And that’s vital in today’s world, where a college degree is more valuable than ever.

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Ronald Cantor is president of Southern Maine Community College.