Simply put, The Circle of Champions Network organizes the existing social capital in first generation students’ lives and converts it into academic capital. First-generation students come from communities with friends and family who love them, but often lack college experience and know-how. As a result, these students receive less guidance in their academic journeys; this is particularly true for many Hispanic STEM students. Surrounded by people who want to help but don’t know how, they are less likely to receive support when applying for college, choosing courses, securing financial aid, planning for careers, and generally navigating the complexities of college. In addition, the under-funded condition of the public colleges they most often attend means college personnel are not typically able to fill these support gaps leaving an estimated 45% of college students (and more for marginalized students) to never see an academic advisor (Flaherty, 2023). The result is many Hispanic STEM undergraduates navigate complicated academic journeys largely by themselves. The Circle of Champions Network helps students identify the natural cheerleaders in their lives. Students tend to nominate an average of a little more than four individuals to join their Circle. Typical nominees include parents, other family members, friends, former high school teachers, professors, and similar individuals. With a Circle of Champions around each student, the Network systems and associated personnel track student academic journeys, keep champions up to date on their student’s progress, and help champions learn how to provide informed support. The environment is culturally responsive and built around a scalable model, allowing coaches to manage a cohort of 500-750 students and 2,000-3,000 champions. Our aim is to convert students’ assets and community wealth into traditional forms of academic capital.

Self-reflection and recommending a grade for your Circle of Champions assignment is important because it encourages you to engage in a deeper analysis of your own work, helping you become more aware of your strengths and areas for improvement. This process helps you assess your progress, recognize the effort you put into the assignment, and critically evaluate the quality of your work against the assignment's objectives and grading criteria. By recommending a grade, you develop a sense of ownership and responsibility for your learning, allowing you to be more proactive in identifying areas where you can improve in the future. This practice also fosters self-awareness and growth, as it encourages you to think more critically about your learning process and how you approach assignments. In turn, it allows your professor to better understand your perspective on your work, leading to more constructive feedback and a collaborative approach to your academic development.

This information collected through this self evaluation will be used for two purposes: 1) your professor will use this to help them assign a grade to your Circle of Champions assignment; and 2) data will be used to help improve the Circle of Champions experience for students and in the end, help more students finds success through their academic journeys.

A post-survey is a data collection tool conducted after the implementation of a project. In this case it is used to measure what you opinion is now that you have been engaged in the Circle of Champions Network. We use it to gather information and compare this information to the baseline survey. The data from a post-survey helps evaluate whether the intended goals or changes were achieved, measure the impact of the intervention, and identify any unexpected results or areas needing further attention.

UCLA and University of Pennsylvania oversee all research related to the Circle of Champions Network. Their goal is to help us understand what kind of impact the Network has on student success and help us understand the improvements that can be made to expand student success through the Network.

Luis Chavez and Bryan Reece are the primary initiators of the Network. Mr. Chavez started working on mentoring solutions for Hispanic students in the early 2000s and has spent his entire career working with learning communities to help Hispanic students succeed (e.g., Puente). Dr. Reece has been working on technology enhanced and instructionally-related solutions for marginalized students since the 1990s. Luis and Bryan came together in 2021 to develop the Circle of Champions Network. 2021 Luis Chavez and Bryan Reece start working on Circle of Champions Network 2022 Luis Chavez and Bryan Reece start JourneyGPS and develop initial prototype of Network 2023 Circle of Champions Network is piloted at four CA HSI community colleges 2024 Network receives NSF Grant in partnership with Gavilan College; UCLA and UPenn join Network to lead independent research; Version 1.0 of Network is launched 2025 California HSI community colleges start full implementation as the 2025-26 Network Partners

Administrative Sponsor (Required): Helps manage the program implementation Faculty Coach (Required): Oversees day-to-day program requirments Institutional Research (Required): Assists UCLA and UPenn with research 5-10 STEM Faculty (Required): Integrates Circle of Champions assignment into courses STEM Pathway Counselor (Optional): Helps with student recruitment and counseling STEM Learning Communities (Optional): Integrates Network into program (MESA, STEM Academy, etc.)

The NSF funding mandate for the Circle of Champions Network is to 1) further develop the Circle of Champions Network; 2) design a model for implementation at a single HSI college (Gavilan College); 3) establish a sustainable model to support college partnerships; and 4) partner with other HSI colleges to build out the Network. Starting in the Fall of 2025, 5 California HSI community colleges will start full implementation as the 2025-26 Network Partners. We are trying to balance between two needs: First, we want to keep the group small to make sure we are as successful as possible with our implementation; Second, we want to press the number of colleges in the group to accommodate the strong interest we have received from colleagues. The colleges will come together through a series of meetings/workshops to collaborate on the work needed to bring the Network to their students. There is no cost to join the Network, but interest in being part of the 2025-26 group has been very strong. We will be vetting the expressed interests to make sure we identify colleges that are positioned for successful implementation. Each year will follow with additional colleges added to the Network. We plan to finalize the inaugural group by early March, 2025. To express your interest in joining the Network or find out more, please contact Luis Chavez. You may reach out to him at (510) 407-3970, lchavez@journeyGPS.com, or https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/partners.

The Circle of Champions Network has been paid for by JourneyGPS and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Technology development and maintenance are provided by JourneyGPS. FirstGen America is assisting with mentor and champion recruitment. Gavilan College has been developing the initial college implementation prototype. Four HSI CA community colleges helped with early pilot implementation. UCLA and University of Pennsylvania are the primary research partners measuring the impact of the Network. Core Implementation Team

Simply put, The Circle of Champions Network organizes the existing social capital in first generation students’ lives and converts it into academic capital. First-generation students come from communities with friends and family who love them, but often lack college experience and know-how. As a result, these students receive less guidance in their academic journeys; this is particularly true for many Hispanic STEM students. Surrounded by people who want to help but don’t know how, they are less likely to receive support when applying for college, choosing courses, securing financial aid, planning for careers, and generally navigating the complexities of college. In addition, the under-funded condition of the public colleges they most often attend means college personnel are not typically able to fill these support gaps leaving an estimated 45% of college students (and more for marginalized students) to never see an academic advisor (Flaherty, 2023). The result is many Hispanic STEM undergraduates navigate complicated academic journeys largely by themselves. The Circle of Champions Network helps students identify the natural cheerleaders in their lives. Students tend to nominate an average of a little more than four individuals to join their Circle. Typical nominees include parents, other family members, friends, former high school teachers, professors, and similar individuals. With a Circle of Champions around each student, the Network systems and associated personnel track student academic journeys, keep champions up to date on their student’s progress, and help champions learn how to provide informed support. The environment is culturally responsive and built around a scalable model, allowing coaches to manage a cohort of 500-750 students and 2,000-3,000 champions. Our aim is to convert students’ assets and community wealth into traditional forms of academic capital.

The Circle of Champions Network will generate net positive income for the college. There are no fees to the college, students, or champions. There are internal expenses for the College, but the College will generate new income from the Network that exceeds internal expenses.

Our initial focus is the enduring (and worsening) academic equity gap for Hispanic STEM students. Our goal is to partner with HSIs to close the Hispanic equity gap in STEM. While we can celebrate the achievement of proportionate college access for students from Hispanic communities (Mora, 2022), success and completion rates remain disproportionately low for students from these communities. Hispanic students have a 5-year graduation rate of 41.5% (Hanson, 2022), and when they start their journey at a community college, their 6-year bachelor’s degree completion rate drops to 13.8% (Community College Research Center, 2020; Reece, 2021). These rates are much lower than upper-middle and upper income White, and Asian students who have completion rates around 70% (National Communication Association, 2019; Reece, 2021). This difference–the Hispanic equity gap–has been historically persistent, and is getting worse (Excelencia in Education, 2023). A full discussion of our focus on the Hispanic STEM gap, including a brief literature review can be found at www.mycircleofchampions.com/latino-a-stem-gap. Our intention is to develop a model for closing equity gaps for all student groups from historically underserved communities. To do this however, we believe we need to start with a specific focus. Working on the Hispanic STEM gap gives us this focus.

College Responsibilities College team attends meetings/workshops College manager serves as the program sponsor Faculty member serves as Coach for the college cohort of students and respective champions College submits supplemental instruction (SI) curriculum/certificate for approval Coach serves as SI instructor of record STEM faculty may chose to offer Circle of Champions Assignment (SI) in sections College collaborates with research team (e.g., Institutional Research provides some data) College students sign up for Network, nominate Champions, and participate in Network College enters Instructional Services Agreement (ISA) to sustain program activities and expenses Circle of Champions Staff/Personnel Responsibilities Organize meetings/workshops and all related training Manage/lead implementation and project oversight Make Circle of Champions Network available to all STEM students (emphasis on Hispanic students) Develop/support all technology Provide all technical support for users (students, champions, faculty, coach) Develop SI curriculum/certificate content and related materials Track and report student engagement to participating faculty for grading/credit purposes Provide regular program reporting for college communications Train/support coach and faculty Manage ongoing research in partnership with UCLA and UPenn

This information will be used to help improve the Circle of Champions experience for students and in the end, help more students finds success through their academic journeys.

A baseline survey is used to collect data at the start of a project or program to establish a reference point for future comparisons. We use this survey to provide a snapshot of student opinions on a range of issues before they start engaging with the Circle of Champions Network. They survey helps us identify key issues, set measurable benchmarks, and assess the needs of students. This data is crucial for monitoring and evaluating progress over time, as it allows for comparisons between student opinion prior to engaging with the Circle of Champions and after.

UCLA and University of Pennsylvania oversee all research related to the Circle of Champions Network. Their goal is to help us understand what kind of impact the Network has on student success and help us understand the improvements that can be made to expand student success through the Network.

Community college students should develop a transfer plan early in their academic journey to ensure a smooth and successful transition to a four-year institution. By planning ahead, students can align their coursework with the transfer requirements of their intended university, avoiding unnecessary or duplicative classes. Early planning also helps students stay on track to meet transfer deadlines, secure necessary resources (like financial aid or scholarships), and take advantage of opportunities for academic and career advising. Additionally, having a clear transfer plan can reduce stress and uncertainty, making the path from community college to a four-year school more manageable and efficient. It also increases the likelihood of a successful transfer, as students are more prepared and informed about the process.

You will hold a conversation with your Virtual Guide. Your Virtual Guide has memorized every college catalog in the U.S., knows your personal profile, and after a series of questions in this Pláticas will be able to make a list of recommended transfer colleges for you to consider. This is a list you should then collect feedback on from your Circle, your college counselor, college faculty, and more.

The transfer plan will help you think through all your transfer options and assist you with the development of a comprehensive plan. You can share this plan with your Circle, the Transfer Center at your college, your college counselor, faculty, and any others who may be able to give you good feed back.

Yes. You can manually send out an update by initiating a chat with your Champions at www.mycircleofchampions.com/chatwithmychampions. If you are going to send out an update manually (without Sylvia's assistance), we recommend you include the following topics in your update message: Discuss a challenge or two you have had over the last month or so. Discuss an accomplishment or two you have had over the last month or so. Discuss what you see as the biggest hurdle or hurdles coming in the next month or so. Ask your Champions a question at the end that is related to your update and will get a response. For example, ask them if they have had a challenge similar to yours, and what they did to address it.

UCLA and University of Pennsylvania are the research partners with the Circle of Champions. Faculty (and graduate students) from these two institutions are leading the analysis of the Network. Their goal is to determine how much impact the Circle of Champions has on student success and what improvements can be made to further expand student success.

This is a very cool tool that makes writing and sending your update very easy. Once you open the tool, you will have a text-style or DM-style conversation with Sylvia (one of our virtual assistants). She will ask you a series of questions. Provide her with simple answers and from there she will generate a recommended update. You can ask her to change the message language. Once you are happy with the update, ask her to send it to your Champions and she will take care of it. That's it! All your Champions will receive a personal message from you.

Reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

Many (all?) of your Champions are pretty busy. An update from you on your academic journey will help keep them informed and help them take relevant steps toward supporting your journey.

Structuring and automating this conversation with Sylvia is fairly complicated. We have almost all of the issues worked out on this tool, but we are confident a few issues will emerge now and then. This is what it means to be in "Beta" form. If the conversation seems to "go off the rails" while you are chatting with Sylvia, we recommend you end the conversation and start it over. If problems persist or you have suggestions on how we can improve this feature, please contact Dr. Reece (breece@journeyGPS.com).

First, it is important that you do not take this as a big personal rejection. Some people are going to say "no." They may be going through something in their private lives and don't have time for the commitment. They may have been asked already by a few other students. We won't ask them to explain why. We just accept their "no" with a thank you and move on. Remember that successful people encounter "no" all the time. The key is to keep moving forward looking for the "yes".

Reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

At a minimum, you should aim for 4 Champions to be in your Circle. We recommend that you do not exceed 10 Champions. You will likely need to nominate more that 4 to reach your minimum.

It could take a while to think about who you want to nominate. Some students spend a few days thinking about this off and on. It is important you select the right people. Once you have the nominees identified and have their contact information, it take less than a minute to actually nominate them.

Their are no required expenses or fees to be a Champion. They program is free to Champions.

It is a pretty simple process for students. Once you have decided who you will nominate, fill in the form below for each individual and hit send. They will receive an invitation from you containing all the information they need to join your Circle.

Nominees who agree to become Champions will be provided with specific instructions (and help) to go through the joining/registration process. Basically, they will need to register and fill our a very brief profile. Their are significant orientation materials provided to Champions at www.myCircleofChampions.com.

Students typically nominate family members, friends, former high school teachers, professors, and similar individuals to join their Circle.

If you are a first-generation college student, it is particularly important to build a Circle of Champions. First-gen students come from communities with friends and family who love them, but often lack college experience and know-how. As a result, these students receive less guidance in their academic journeys. Surrounded by people who want to help but don’t know how, they are less likely to receive support when applying for college, choosing courses, securing financial aid, planning for careers, and generally navigating the complexities of college. In addition, the under-funded condition of the public colleges they most often attend means college personnel are not typically able to fill these support gaps leaving an estimated 45% of college students (and more for marginalized students) to never see an academic advisor (Flaherty, 2023). The result is first-gen undergraduates navigate complicated academic journeys largely by themselves. This condition contributes to an academic equity gap for students from historically underserved communities. While we can celebrate the achievement of proportionate college access for most student groups (Mora, 2022), success and completion rates remain disproportionately low for students of color and low income students from all race and ethnicity groups. An engaged Circle of Champions has been proven to help first-gen students find greater academic success.

The primary role of a Champion is to keep up on you academic journey and support you through the journey. Some will do this at the emotional level, providing support and encouragement. Others in your Circle may have more detailed college process knowledge and can help from that perspective. One may even have professional mentoring expertise and can help with the job seeking end of your journey. Regardless, the primary role of a Champion is to help you move forward on your journey however they can. An overview of their role can be found at www.mycircleofchampions.com/copy-of-being-a-coach. A more detailed explanation of a Champions responsibilities can be found at www.mycircleofchampions.com/copy-of-starting-your-journey.

Reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

Building and maintaining your profile information is important because it is the most concise summary of where you are in your academic journey. This is where your Champions can go to see how you are doing and offer specific support in relation to your journey. It is also a space where you can reflect on your academic journey, document where you are, where you are headed, what you need to do, and more.

Yes! We keep all of your information securely stored behind your username and password. The only people who have access to the information are you, your Champions, your Coach, the executive personnel charged with maintaining the website/application.

Students typically take about 15 or 20 minutes to initially fill in their profile information. On a regular basis, we will ask you to update bits and pieces of your profile. These reminders typically take students about five minutes or less to update. You can also go to your profile at any time and spend as much time as you would like making sure all the information is accurate.

You can use the tools to create a new password at the the login page, reach out to your coach, or find other resources for student help at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/copy-of-department-discipline-partner.

No. Students can register and participate in the Circle of Champions at no cost. This program is free to students.

The information you will be sharing with your Coach and Champions may at times be private information. We need to make sure this information is kept confidential, and the only way to do this is to have your personal information and communications with your Circle transpire in a secure environment. Once you are logged in, you can stay logged in to make accessing your Circle of Champions as easy as possible.

The process usually takes students less than 5 minutes to register.

Reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

At a minimum, you should aim for 4 Champions to be in your Circle. We recommend that you do not exceed 10 Champions. You will likely need to nominate more that 4 to reach your minimum.

We refer to a Circle of Champions as a Circle or your Circle. The Circle includes all the Champions who are supporting your academic journey. It may take a little while (a few months?) to build your Circle. You may add people to your Circle over time as key individuals come in and out of your life. Regardless, this is a group of people who will celebrate with you when you achieve important accomplishments, support you when you struggle with challenging hurdles, and help you when you are making important decisions.

This varies quite a bit from student to student. Some students are able to identify nominees very quickly, extend invitations, and fill their Circle in a matter of weeks. Other students come from small families, no families, or families with strained relationships and spend several months or longer going through the process of building their Circle. If you are struggling to find four individuals to join your Circle, reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) for help.

Reach out to your coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

If you are a first-generation college student, it is particularly important to build a Circle of Champions. First-gen students come from communities with friends and family who love them, but often lack college experience and know-how. As a result, these students receive less guidance in their academic journeys. Surrounded by people who want to help but don’t know how, they are less likely to receive support when applying for college, choosing courses, securing financial aid, planning for careers, and generally navigating the complexities of college. In addition, the under-funded condition of the public colleges they most often attend means college personnel are not typically able to fill these support gaps leaving an estimated 45% of college students (and more for marginalized students) to never see an academic advisor (Flaherty, 2023). The result is first-gen undergraduates navigate complicated academic journeys largely by themselves. This condition contributes to an academic equity gap for students from historically underserved communities. While we can celebrate the achievement of proportionate college access for most student groups (Mora, 2022), success and completion rates remain disproportionately low for students of color and low income students from all race and ethnicity groups. An engaged Circle of Champions has been proven to help first-gen students find greater academic success.

This feature allows you to see all the Champions in your Circle. You can view their individual profile information and reach out to them via email or chat. You can also communicate with the entire Circle easily from this view. If you want to nominate more people to your Circle, you can access that function from this view as well.

The chat/messaging tool makes it easy to see all individuals in your Circle and see what comments they are making. This is also an important tool because it allows us to track/record all communications. This helps us make the Circle of Champions Network available for free to all students and Champions.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/champion-help.

To add more Champions to your Circle, go to https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/nominatechampions and nominate individuals who you think would be good Champions.

You can use the tools to create a new password at the the login page (https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/sign-up-login) or reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/champion-help.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/champion-help.

To see a brief overview of what it is like to be a Champion, visit https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/starting-your-journey A full orientation to becoming a Champion is discussed at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/starting-your-journey

No. Champions and students can register and participate in the Circle of Champions at no cost. This program is free to Champions and students.

The information your student(s) will be sharing with you may at times be private/sensitive information. We need to make sure this information is kept confidential, and the only way to do this is to have the entire Circle registered behind a username and password. This will set up a secure environment. Once you are logged in, you can stay logged in to make accessing the Circle of Champions as easy as possible.

The process usually takes less than 5 minutes to register.

Yes! We keep all of your information securely stored behind your username and password. The only people who have access to the information are you, your student(s), the other Champions in your Circle, your student's Coach, the executive personnel charged with maintaining the website/application.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

Building and maintaining your profile information is important because it helps your student(s) get to know you a little better. I helps them build a more meaningful and personal relationship with you. It also helps the other Champions in your Circle get to know you in your common effort to help your student(s) succeed.

Champions typically take about 15 or 20 minutes to initially fill in their profile information. You can go to your profile at any time and spend as much time as you would like making sure all the information is accurate and up to date.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

In the chat/message tool below, choose who you want to communicate with by selecting a channel. If you only want to chat with your student, choose that channel. If you want to chat with everyone in the Circle, choose that channel. Once you have selected the channel, start typing your message. When you are done, hit send.

The chat/messaging tool makes it easy to communicate with your student and other Champions in your Circle. It also makes it easy for everyone else in the Circle to stay connected with each other. You can use the tool like a texting tool. This is also an important tool because it allows us to track/record all communications. This helps us make the Circle of Champions Network available for free to all students and Champions.

All of the progress information comes from the student him or herself. We do not pull data from the college to assess student progress, rather we rely on students to self-report.

If the student's profile/progress seems to lack information or be out of date, it is because the student has not updated their profile. This in itself may be a good reason for you to reach out to your student with a note of encouragement. Talk to them about the need to maintain an assessment of their progress. You may want to make that comment as a post for the student and the entire Circle in the chat/messaging area at www.mycircleofchampions.com/chat-with-my-student-circle.

You may want to "brag" about your student's progress, especially if they are doing well. For example, you may want to post something on your social media account about your student that other family members will see. This is a good practice. It will help your student feel supported. Your student has already provided consent for you to share their progress information. With that said, we recommend that you use caution and exercise discretion before sharing any of the following information: grades grade point average (GPA) student schedules student contact information Social Security numbers student ID numbers Rather than specifically mentioning these confidential items in public, you should think about making more general statements. For example, instead of say you are proud of your student for maintaining a 3.1 GPA, you may want to say you are proud of your student maintaining good grades.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at www.mycircleofchampions.com/help.

We keep all student progress information securely stored behind username and password protections. The only people who have access to the information are the student who "owns" the profile, the student's Champions, the student's Coach, and the executive personnel charged with maintaining the website/application.

This feature allows you to see all the Champions in your student's Circle. You can view their individual profile information and reach out to them via email or chat. You can also communicate with the entire Circle easily from this view.

This varies quite a bit from student to student. Some students are able to identify nominees very quickly, extend invitations, and fill their Circle in a matter of weeks. Other students come from small families, no families, or families with strained relationships and consequently spend several months or longer going through the process of building their Circle. If your student is struggling to find four individuals to join their Circle, you may want to reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) for help finding additional Champions.

At a minimum, students should aim for 4 Champions to be in their Circle. We recommend that student's not exceed 10 Champions. If your students has not completed their Circle, it would be helpful if you encourage them to do so.

Reach out to your student's coach (www.mycircleofchampions.com/mycoach) or find other resources for student help at https://www.mycircleofchampions.com/champion-help.

First-generation college students (students from families where no one has completed college) particularly need a Circle of Champions. First-gen students come from communities with friends and family who love them, but often lack college experience and know-how. As a result, these students receive less guidance in their academic journeys. Surrounded by people who want to help but often don’t know how, they are less likely to receive support when applying for college, choosing courses, securing financial aid, planning for careers, and generally navigating the complexities of college. In addition, the under-funded condition of the public colleges they most often attend means college personnel are not typically able to fill these support gaps leaving an estimated 45% of college students (and more for marginalized students) to never see an academic advisor (Flaherty, 2023). The result is first-gen undergraduates navigate complicated academic journeys largely by themselves. This condition contributes to an academic equity gap for students from historically underserved communities. While we can celebrate the achievement of proportionate college access for most student groups (Mora, 2022), success and completion rates remain disproportionately low for students of color and low income students from all race and ethnicity groups. An engaged Circle of Champions has been proven to help first-gen students find greater academic success.

We refer to a Circle of Champions as a Circle or your Circle. The Circle includes all the Champions who are supporting a student's academic journey (one student and several Champions). It may take a little while (a few months?) for each student to build their Circle. Students may add people to their Circle over time as key individuals come in and out of their life. Regardless, a Circle is a group of people who will celebrate with the student when they achieve important accomplishments and help the student when they struggle with challenging hurdles.