Description, Mission & Goals
Program Description
FYE connects first-year (including transfer) students to a community of first-year friendly courses and faculty who partner in helping FYE students build their academic foundation and make a successful transition to Chico State.
Mission
The mission of the First-Year Experience is to ensure the successful transition and retention of all first-year (including transfer) students at CSU, Chico. FYE supports the design of research-based curricular experiences that emphasize social connection, identity exploration, academic and civic efficacy.
FYE's Community Agreements
- Engagement and Participation: Come prepared and on time to share your perspectives and engage in lively discussions. Your insights are valuable and your active participation will enhance the learning experience for everyone.
- Reflective Thinking: Take time to reflect on the material and how it applies to your role. Be ready to discuss practical ways to integrate what we learn into your daily work.
- Supportive and Kind Environment: Everyone should be encouraged to express their thoughts. Listen actively, respect diverse viewpoints, and offer and accept constructive feedback. Mistakes happen so be kind.
- Application of Learning: Our goal is not just to learn concepts, but to apply them. Think about how each topic can be used in your weekly duties and be prepared to discuss and share strategies for practical implementation. Work to put ideas into practice and create a safe environment for learning from our mistakes using a growth mindset.
- Ask Questions: Be curious, yet respectful. Ask if you need help or support. Be prepared with questions and be open to different forms of support. It’s important to be respectful of how others give support and whether they are ready for support.
- Purpose and Adaptability: Purpose is the foundation of everything we do in FYE. Keep purpose and adaptability in mind when approaching challenging situations. Reflect on our purpose often so that we create opportunities to adapt and improve.
Goals
- Specifically designed classes, called FYE-Supported Courses, that are designed with students’ transitioning processes in mind
- FYE-Supported Course offerings change every semester and are always 100-level and meet General Education requirements
- Public Sphere events where students meet members of the community, and their course work is central to discussions at the event
- Sense of Place is connected to the course work in nearly all of FYE’s Supported Courses
- Town Hall Meeting is connected to the course work in many “POLS 155: American Government: National, State, and Local” courses
- Outreach to undeclared and transfer students to support students with insider knowledge about navigating Chico State’s campus and relevant resources and organizations
- Exploratory Studies is designed for undeclared students
- Transfer Support is designed for first-year transfer students
- A mentoring program that connects first-year students with more-experienced students
- The Peer Academic Leader program supports students enrolled in FYE-Supported Courses in the classroom
Student Learning Outcomes
- Equitably increase first-year student retention from Fall to Spring semester and first- to second-year.
- Increase sense of belonging and mattering in first-year students.
- Provide opportunities for first-year students to develop an academic identity.
- Improve academic efficacy in first-year students.
- Improve civic efficacy in first-year students.