In families where higher education is not yet the norm, we have found that high levels of support, interaction, and trust are in order. Our Transition Counselor works with students from their enrollment at The Care Center through their college careers. With transition offices at The Care Center and at Holyoke Community College, there are several touch points in place to offer gentle consistent support.
Our transition counselor helps students access resources that are available within The Care Center, such as tutors, as well as outside of The Care Center, including housing, food assistance, child care and more. In addition, the transition counselor:
- Teaches “Transition to College” (a career and education exploration course)
- Walks students through the college application process
- Supports students in completing financial aid forms
- Helps navigate life’s circumstances that can interfere with enrolling in and attending college
Once a student matriculates into college, an array of other connections with the Care Center Transition Counselor take place both at The Care Center satellite office in the Kittredge Center at Holyoke Community College and at our facility at 247 Cabot Street including:
- Connecting students to on-campus resources and services
- Academic course selection
- Alumnae relations and support
- Computer resources at our Cabot Street site
- Guiding yearly financial aid reapplication
- Linking to community resources such as welfare and housing
- Modeling and teaching self-advocacy skills
- Childcare offered through the first two semesters of college
