Supera Spanish Speaking Program
Institution:
Kean University
State:
New Jersey
Academic Level:
Baccalaureate
Issue Area:
Access
Program Focus:
Bilingual/ESL
Website:
Key Personnel:
Rosa Paulino
Contact Info:
paulinro@kean.edu | 908.737.3943
Overview
The mission of the Kean University Supera Spanish Speaking Program (SSP) is to increase the number of Hispanic students attaining a bachelor’s degree by providing access to higher education to students who are English Language Learners (ELL). Through Supera, students follow a structured study program designed to achieve full integration into university life. This includes taking courses in Spanish during their first years of study.
Program Goals:
Gain access to higher education
Obtain acquisition of the English language
Progress in their college career and complete their degrees.
Increase graduation rates to 75%
Program Description
SSP was established in 1972 by a group of faculty members concerned with the low number of Hispanic students enrolled in the University at the time. The program does not require SAT scores and allows participants to submit admission essays and letters of recommendation in Spanish. The admission GPA is 2.5, and TOEFL is not required.
The following services are offered to help students persist to graduation: academic advisement, financial aid assistance, career counseling, tutoring, peer mentoring, scholarship awareness, and completing the FAFSA and the New Jersey Alternative Financial Aid Application for Dreamers. Additionally, students participate in a four-week summer academy, at no cost to them, that assists them with on-campus job placement. High school information sessions, parent-teacher conferences, and parent orientations help raise program exposure and enrollment.
Outcome
The number of applications for the fall of 2022 is 262 thus far, compared to 148 in 2021 and 244 in 2020, representing an increase of 43% from Fall 2021 for program enrollment.
There was a significant 10% increase in retention from the academic year 2020-2021 to the academic year 2021-2022.
The first-semester retention rates for program participants have been 89%, 82%, and 92% for academic years 2019, 2020, and 2021, in comparison to the university rates of 89%, 86%, and 88%.
