Saddleback slaps you with an academic probation for Christmas? There are options.
(OLIVER YU/LARIAT STAFF)
Students on academic probation will find the academic probation workshops to be a leap to success and a great opportunity to point them in the right direction to increasing their Grade Point Average.
Along with the academic workshops, there are students in the quads that are there just to help others with their classes and increasing their classes.
There are three types of probation:
First, being academic probation, where the student has a GPA of less than a 2.0.
Second being progress probation where the student has a GPA below 2.0 but their semester GPA is improving.
Lastly is disqualification, where a student has three semesters or longer with a GPA of less than a 2.0, that student then gets dismissed for a semester.
All students need to do is take 90 minutes out of their time to attend this workshop.
During the academic workshop students share peer to peer on why and how they ended up on academic probation.
“Some students will say I partied too much, I was only going to Saddleback, or that they didn’t know when to withdraw,” said Penelope Skaff, part time councilor and instructor.
A total of 312 students completed the workshop survey since Spring 2009.
This program started last Fall semester, but the majority of the workshops took place in Spring 2009.
The workshop usually sees 10-15 students attend per meeting.
“The number one reason why students end up on academic probation in the first place is they do not know why they are here at Saddleback, and they also do not know their major,” Skaff said.
During the workshops students go over basic skills. They are also taught to look for other opportunities like free tutoring at the Learning Assistance Program (LAP) or even to see a councilor.
Both of these services are free to Saddleback students and should be taken into consideration if they need help.
“We also go over their transcripts and make sure they know the deadlines as to when they are able to withdraw from a class or drop it,” Skaff said.
There are student scholarships available for students who are paying for their own schooling, and are forced to work full time.
“If a student can give 90 minutes of their time attending a probation workshop, they can receive a lot of information that can get them back on track to being a successful student,” Skaff said.