Featured | Arts and SciencesAugust 20, 2021

UAFS Concludes First Summer Bridge Program

Students who participated in the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith’s first Summer Bridge in English program praised the program and the people they met through it. 

Matthew Schmitz, an incoming Business Administration major, said he’d recommend the course to incoming students despite its quick pacing.

“The course has been a great learning experience for me. I’ve learned how to improve my writing skills and how to do really well in class,” Schmitz said.

The inaugural UAFS Summer Bridge in English program gave eight entering students a head start on the semester ahead by allowing them to complete their English Comp I and College Writing Workshop courses during the summer. All eight students enrolled finished the courses successfully. 

In addition to the course work itself, students also had a chance to establish relationships with UAFS Writing Center tutors and academic peer mentors. That means they will already be connected to two critical support systems to help them during their first year of college.

David Nickell directed the Summer Bridge in English, which the US Department of Education funded under a Title III Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) Grant. The Summer Bridge in English aimed to improve academic success and move students rapidly into core courses.

The program was available to students at no cost.

“I appreciate the effort Mr. Nickell and the peer mentors put into helping each student improve, and they make me excited to take my next English course,” said Shawnee Haysmer, an incoming Radiology major. 

Nickell had praise for program participants.

“The students in our first session of the Bridge Program were eager to get a head start in college,” he said. “They embraced the challenge of the condensed semester and utilized the incredible support from our well-trained student tutors. The relationship they formed with each other, with their peer mentors, and with the Writing Center will, I believe, prove to be a huge factor in their success here and UAFS.”

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