Sense of community binds FSB Passport Program graduates together
High-touch program designed to teach skills, support students
Sense of community binds FSB Passport Program graduates together
High-touch program designed to teach skills, support students
On the Farmer School of Business website, the FSB Passport Program is described as “a comprehensive four-year high-touch student success program for students … who will receive comprehensive academic support along with professional development and service-learning opportunities.”
To Jack Isphording, graduating from the program this month, it was something that is simple and complicated all at once: Community.
“Passport, to me, is a way that you can form community and connection. You're scattered coming into your first year, and that's a very good way to form those connections, but it meant even more to me going through my four years here, because I had someone to rely on,” he said. “It was kind of that safety net that allowed me to progress through my four years and be able to rely and fall back upon.”
“Passport was in a very important position in my life a couple of years ago, and it's the reason why I can look back at this school and think of it as a place where I not only had success, but also where I was not taken advantage of in my most vulnerable time of grief,” senior Paige Haviland said. “That sense of community that I had, even through just one person, made all of the difference.”
Soon-to-be graduates of the program gathered last week to celebrate with other students and Passport staff, hearing messages from their mentors and talking about their experiences.
“I want to say thank you to all the staff. You guys have been amazing and a great experience for me. Thank you to my fellow Passport students. Starting off the freshman year, it was really great to have you guys and know you always had my back,” senior Jason Mihal told the group. “I know everybody's going to do great things, and I'm happy that I got to spend these four years with you.”
“The biggest thing I took away from Passport was how to be a better person, both professionally and personally,” senior Mackenzie Copp said.
“I remember coming in before freshman year being really nervous about who I was going to meet, the opportunities I was going to go through. Everyone I met through the first week just welcomed me with open arms,” senior Kevin Donaldson said.
The program is designed to help students develop valuable skills related to transitioning to college, personal development, time management, study skills, degree planning, internships, and career development for greater employment opportunities.
But for those who take part, it can become a family away from family.
“Passport was a safe space for me to go when I was a freshman and didn't really have a place to go that was outside of my comfort zone,” Copp explained. “I enjoyed having Passport as a kind of place where I could be myself and have people who are like-minded always be there, too.”
“Favorite thing about Passport is the community. I met these people freshman year before school even started. So right when school started, I was able to fit right in and had my group, and never felt like I was alone,” Mihal said. “Community is always important, because as you're going through life, if you're down and someone else is up, or someone has an opportunity, and they know you, and they know you've been working hard, they've stuck with you through this process, they know you're going to be a good person for this position. And maybe they can help you out, and maybe I can help them out. It's helping each other.”
“There's always been somebody that has been really rooting for us,” Haviland said. “it's not networking, because that would seem transactional. It is truly community in the truest sense of the word.”
