Community College Counseling: Academic and Personal Support

Campus Safety on Community Colleges

To increase campus security and student safety, community colleges across the country are boosting their security efforts. With new technologies for added support, in addition to widespread tools for campus officials and student communication, community colleges are striving to provide all campus visitors with a safe and supportive environment.

Community College Campus Safety Efforts

While each community college campus has its own unique safety and security protocols, most schools provide students with fundamental officers, resources, and security measures.

Located near Detroit, Michigan, Henry Ford Community College provides students with a specific office designated for campus safety. As the school describes,

“Campus Safety is responsible for maintaining and releasing incident and accident reports, key control, issuance of employee and student ID cards, maintenance of the access control system, crime statistics, crime prevention and security awareness programs such as Campus Watch and Safe Walk, as well as overall control of all security and safety operations.”

While Henry Ford certainly provides students with basic theft and safety efforts, their added security awareness programs help foster increased and widespread support.

For example, Henry Ford Community College’s Safe Walk program was designed by both the Student Government and the Office of Campus Safety. It is described as an

“An integral part of a safe campus is the involvement of students in their campus community. Safe Walk student volunteers provide an escort to any student or staff member who requests it. Safe Walk

Providing students with fun and beneficial group and personal experiences, summer camps can be a great opportunity for kids to interact with others while learning more about themselves and their world. As the American Camp Association supports, “camp provides children with a community of caring adults, who nurture experiential education that results in self-respect and appreciation for human value,” while the kids and campers can benefit from experiences that foster “self-identity, self-worth, self-esteem, leadership, and self-respect.”

While there are a variety of camps and summer venues across the country, parents can take advantage of local and affordable summer camps offered at nearby community colleges. While some high school students already enjoy dual enrollment in public school and community colleges, now even elementary-aged students can learn on these campuses.

The Benefits of Summer Camps

As the American Camp Association (ACA) further reveals, both parents and children can benefit from camping venues, as “parents have reported that when their children return home from camp they are more caring, understand the importance of giving, are more equipped to stand up for what they know is right, and are willing to be more responsible. These are the qualities that will help build a successful nation and a civil society.”

Added to this, ACA also asserts that children are able to thrive, and are at less of a risk, when they are engaged in a “camp where they have a sense of community, develop intergenerational relationships, and learn through

As the job market is becoming increasingly competitive, many community college students are taking advantage of internship opportunities before they receive their diplomas. Internships can provide students with a variety of benefits, many of which often help push a prospective job candidate’s resume to the top of the application stack.

Benefits of Internships

Learning More about Your Major

One of the foremost benefits of a community college internship is the experience allows students to receive hands-on interaction with work in their field of study. Added to this, for students who are unsure of their major, or uncertain of what their major may lead to careerwise, they can utilize internships to ensure that they are on the correct path of study.

According to college advisors, the average student changes majors three times before finalizing their course of study. According to Dr. Fritz Grupe of My Majors, approximately 80% of high school students begin college without knowing what major they want to study.

By working with different internships, you can hone your professional interest and find the appropriate major for you.

This video reports on a student's internship with Facebook.

Build Your Resume

As a great number of candidates may be applying for a single position, community college interns are able to build up their resume with significant work experiences. In today’s competitive work environment, your resume is what sets you apart from other candidates.

If you

As community colleges provide students of diverse backgrounds with access to courses, instruction, and training venues, schools are now implementing increased support for students whose primary and native language is not English. Students who are in the process of learning English are referred as English as a Second Language (ESL) students, and community colleges are revising their programs to extend and improve academic and campus support.

Community College ESL Courses

Many community colleges offer ESL students a variety of specialized language courses. Typically, students will take a proficiency test and will then enroll in the appropriate ESL / language course based on individual skills and abilities. As Kenneth Beare in “Setting ESL Class Objectives” explains, taking “language acquisition needs into consideration when planning a class or individual instruction is crucial for a successful learning experience […] When a student understands his/her reasons for learning English well, he can then better plan his learning strategy. In the classroom, he/she can help the teacher identify needs and desires.”

This video explains what ESL is.

Community College ESL Resources

In addition to specialized courses, most community colleges also provide students with personalized support systems, such as tutoring offices and academic advisors. Students can take advantage of ESL resources by visiting the community college campus resource center, or by meeting with an academic advisor for further guidance and information.

Examining Community College ESL Programs

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