ILLUMINATING THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS

Welcome, new and returning students! Whether it’s your first year or an additional year in college, you’re probably anticipating a major life adjustment starting this Fall Term. Mt. Hood Community College is advertising a “Promise of a brighter future,” and we at the Advocate believe that can happen – but only with your engagement.

Over the past few years there has been a slight decline in classroom enrollment at MHCC, dropping 14.8 percent from the 2013-14 school year to the 2017-18 school year. Meanwhile, the share of students taking online courses has increased, from 11.8 percent of total credit hours taken to 15.9 percent, during that time. With MHCC also being a commuter campus, it has been difficult to better engage students in on-campus activities.

This is not to say the college has failed in attempts to do just that. The efforts of this year’s Associated Student Government (ASG) leaders, AVID, and the project to implement a Student Services HUB for new students on campus (part of the NSE, or New Student Experience, project) are notable this month.

Even if you aren’t necessarily plugged into on-campus activities, the act of attending college is a great opportunity. We encourage all Mt. Hood students to maximize the benefits of their time here by being involved in student life activities.

As Advocate staff members, we have found that being involved with an on-campus entity helped us feel like we have a place at MHCC: We have a stronger sense of community. And this prompted us to share our experiences and resources with other students.

As students we understand college is a lot to handle, on its own. Add personal matters, a job, and housing to that, and you are likely to experience stress. To help you cope with this new level of challenges, we’ve listed some of the many resources on campus.

The act of simply browsing the MHCC website can be immensely helpful, too. This will lead you to information relating to your program of study, financial aid concerns, tutoring support, and more.

MHCC also has the Career Planning and Counseling office, which provides personal counseling and referrals for “depression, anxiety, suicide, stress management, eating disorders, and addiction.”

(Please note that if you are in a mental health crisis and are in need of immediate attention, the CPCC’s faculty counselors can be available for emergency counseling during normal business hours. For 24/7 emergency counseling, referral, or assistance beyond the CPCC’s normal scope, call the Multnomah County Mental Health Call Center at 503-988-4888 or toll-free at 800-716-9769.)

Being involved can help you see that in light of the challenges that lie ahead in your secondary education, connecting with fellow students and staff can be of great aid to you. Building a community around yourself helps you realize you’re not alone. You are here for a reason. This also is an investment in your future. To truly be successful, you may need to ask for help and seek answers, and those answers are likely provided by resources on campus.

Meantime, if something comes up, or you feel like you need to do something else in your life, you have the choice to pursue that. Realize that you aren’t required to follow the standard time-line set forth by the social norm of going to college for ‘X’ number of years for a degree. Take the time that you need to make a good decision about your future.

Our weekly editorial is designed to explore compelling issues that affect the community we serve. It has no attributed author because it represents the collective voice of the Advocate editorial board.