Brazosport College’s new Pathways Center offers academic assistance, career/degree guidance | News

White knew she wanted to go into education herself, but transferring from Brazosport College hadn’t occurred to her.

White started working at the college’s new Pathways Center when it opened this fall. That’s where she met Transfer Services Coordinator Gladys Gomez and her academic path became more clear.

White is transferring to Texas State University in the spring.

That’s what the Pathways Center does for students, faculty and the community. It literally helps narrow the path to get from where someone is to where they want to be.

When anyone seeking assistance goes to the Pathways Center in the Bonnen Central Building, they’ll first encounter White along with other student workers Isabella McAdams and Ava Harkreader.

After the student workers check them in and make a note of what services are being sought, people continue into the center where they’ll meet Gomez, like White did, for transfer seminars, college fairs, transfer coaching or community referrals.

Also available is Career Services Coordinator Jeff English, who helps with AI integration, mock interviews, resumé advising and career exploration.

Anyone needing financial assistance will go to Financial Wellness Coordinator Pamela Brooks, who helps with developing a budget, understanding credit, creating a savings plan and financial referrals. Brooks also helps Spanish-speaking students, faculty members and community members.

Finally, full-time Pathway coaches Jennie Cobb and Ammar Habib offer schedule help, degree plans, academic coaching and campus resources. The Pathways Center also has four part-time Pathway coaches: Alinka Del Castillo, Kristina Rahrlien, Melisa Castillo and Trina Umadhay.

The Pathways Center is the college’s opportunity to offer all the services students need in one integrated space, Director of Student Achievement and Success Susan Lancaster said.

“This is an opportunity for us to create a warm, welcoming place for students to receive services and information and support,” Lancaster said. “At Brazosport College there are four pillars that support student success.

“The first pillar is about creating academic pathways, degree plans, courses that are sequenced for our students to be successful in reaching a point of graduation with a certificate or a degree or a skill.”

The second pillar is about helping students get on the right pathway, which is what English does, Lancaster said.

“A lot of students feel the need to pursue something that they don’t want to do because someone else has sort of pushed them in that direction,” she said. “So, my job is to help them figure out what they want to do and what makes them happy, what brings them joy.”

English works in partnership with Gomez to help students find their correct pathway, whether it’s at Brazosport College or a different educational institution.

“I help students with coaching them through that process,” Gomez said. “If they already know where they want to go, I help them research deadlines, find documents. If they don’t know where they want to go, we research what schools offer the degrees that they want and then we research the differences between all of them. I tell students, ‘I can’t pick the school for you but I can gather as much information so you can make the most informed decision for yourself.’”

Cobb and Habib help support students with their academic needs, Lancaster said.

“We get to meet with students one-on-one and get the opportunity to find out what their trials might be, what their obstacles might be,” Cobb said. “We try to get to know them and see if we can get them the resources that they need, make sure they’re in the right classes for what they want to be doing.”

A rewarding part of the job is getting to see students when they succeed, whether that’s at graduation or when they leave Brazosport College for their next step, she said.

The third pillar is supporting a student on their pathway, Lancaster said, which is another purpose for the Pathway coaches.

“That fourth pillar for student success is active and engaged learning. All of our faculty across campus are committed to making that happen in our classrooms,” Lancaster said.