About 90 students from Grand Rapids Community College, Henry Ford College and Schoolcraft College gathered in the LSA building Friday to kick off the Transfer Bridges campus visit. The event was one of multiple day-long explorations of various University of Michigan resources that transfer students could use while applying to and attending the University. Both students who have already been accepted to the University and those who were still considering applying attended the visit. The Transfer Bridges to the Humanities program, housed in the LSA Transfer Student Center, is designed to increase access to the liberal arts for community college students. The program offers support and advising, mentorship opportunities, and learning and social experiences for transferring students.
The Transfer Bridge event included a resource fair, financial aid presentation, Central Campus tour and student panel, featuring departments including the Institute for the Humanities and Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures. Several LSA transfer recruiting coordinators, all of whom were transfer students from community colleges themselves, spoke at the event. Justin Villanueva, a coordinator who attended Henry Ford College before transferring, spoke to attendees about the services Transfer Bridges offers for students.
“The program will help develop your academic plan by choosing courses that maximize transfer credit,” Villaneuva said. “We also help you articulate professional goals through one-on-one academic advising and the transfer student center, which is online and a resource I didn’t have when transferring.”
In an interview with The Michigan Daily, Nick Turinsky, Transfer Bridges project director, said there is a close relationship between the University and partner colleges. The Transfer Bridge program is funded through a grant awarded to the University in 2018 from the Mellon Foundation.
“It’s been a fabulous program and fabulous partnership between LSA and the community colleges,” Turinsky said. “Over the six years that we’ve had those grants, it’s really helped us understand the dynamics of community college and the needs of transfer students.”
Transfer Bridges not only hosts campus visits but also provides summer learning opportunities during which students can meet their professors and peers before transferring.
Transfer student ambassadors answered questions about the transfer experience and resources at the event. The ambassadors are current U-M students who help guide new transfers. In an interview with The Daily, LSA senior Kristin Hollenbeck talked about her decision to become a Transfer Bridges ambassador after transferring from Henry Ford College in 2021.
“It just made a lot of sense to give back to the community in the same way that they helped me,” Hollenback said. “Coming from community college, a lot of my mentees and myself are from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and the University of Michigan has a reputation of being very out of reach for those demographics. So just seeing that hit them when they get here is really rewarding.”
Rehab Azab is a second-year student at Henry Ford College and said she plans to attend the University beginning fall 2024. Azab told The Daily she attended the Transfer Bridges event to get insight into the U-M community.
“I’m using Transfer Bridges as a gateway into what the University offers and to get used to the environment,” Azab said. “It introduces you to so many people around campus that can help you get the resources you need. I’m excited to see everything this place has to offer, especially all of the opportunities to network.”
Daily Staff Reporters Violet Boyd and Sachi Gosal can be reached at viboyd@umich.edu and sgosal@umich.edu.