For those in academic despair, help is not far away.
The Education Support Program, which has been operating on campus for over 30 years, has helped students who have a hard time adjusting to the academic responsibilities at The University of Memphis.
Barbara Bekis, educational support coordinator, said, “Freshmen have a tendency to do it their way before finding out the college way—and that can be very hurtful to the academic success.”
Bekis preaches the importance of becoming self-sufficient in different ways, but she stresses academic responsibility most.
“It is difficult, especially for freshmen that come making the transition from high school to college and who must overcome the freedom of university life,” Bekis said.
The program is especially structured to counteract this, Bekis added.
All U of M students can take advantage of the program, though some programs such as freshman tutoring are for students who have signed up for the Freshman First Program.
Freshman tutoring is designed to help incoming freshmen to adjust to university life and academics. ESP tutors Richardson Tower Freshman First participants by every Monday evening.
The tutoring process is easygoing. The tutors are undergraduate students, so the people needing help talk to students their age, said Keith Lacey, freshman theater major who gets help from ESP.
“I like the tutors,” said Karen Wheat, an elementary education major. “I have the same tutor every time I come in—that helps because she knows me, how I do and where I lack confidence in.”
Yang Wen, a senior biology major and tutor for four years, said: “We ask them what they need help in; we don’t try to be teachers.”
Tutors would never try to go over a whole chapter. Instead, they usually concentrate on specific concepts.
Some students have a harder time adjusting to college level courses than others do, and students have different deficiencies. The ESP program’s staff members’ major fields of study are also the subjects they tutor.
“I started coming to tutoring since July,” Lacey said. “I have been coming for help in Algebra.”
Lacey said he gets help with homework and reviews for exams. Although he hasn’t done as well on an algebra test as he had hoped, he attributes passing the test with help from the ESP program. “I’m coming here to get into the habit of liking math,” Lacey said
