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<font face="Calibri">Colleagues, </font></p>
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<font color="#000080" face="Calibri">I</font><font face="Calibri"><font color="#000080"> am writing to you to inform you about a program the University College will initiate this summer and to ask for your help recruiting excellent undergraduate students to
serve as mentors to incoming students. </font></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri"><font color="#000080">W</font><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128);">hen first-time full-time students join us at orientation this summer, they will learn about our new First-Year TRAC (Transforming Relationships & Academic Connections),
the guiding force behind our comprehensive retention effort. The First-Year TRAC has been designed to help ensure freshman success by aligning academic and engagement efforts to retain first-year students.</span></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri"><o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<o:p><font face="Calibri"> </font></o:p></p>
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<font face="Calibri">As part of the First-Year TRAC, students will:</font></p>
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<li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Attend New Student Orientation</font></span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Attend Lion Camp (Our extended orientation) </font></span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Participate in a mentor group</font></span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Take a Signature Course with a distinguished professor</font></span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Read the University’s Book in Common</font></span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-family: Cambria; font-size: 16px;"><font face="Calibri">Attend First-Year TRAC events on campus<o:p></o:p></font></span></li></ul>
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<font face="Calibri">The piece of the TRAC that holds it all together is the <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">mentor groups</span>. Each mentor group will serve 25 students, and based on our current enrollment predictions, we are planning for
48 mentors. These mentors are paid undergraduate students who will be trained to help us:<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">·<span style="line-height: normal;"> </span>Deliver student-success content like goal setting, time management, note taking, study skills, et cetera<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">·<span style="line-height: normal;"> </span>Help create cohorts within the freshman class<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">·<span style="line-height: normal;"> </span>Help guide students to resources on campus<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">·<span style="line-height: normal;"> </span>Deliver some Book in Common content<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">·<span style="line-height: normal;"> </span>Guide students to First-Year TRAC events put on by various offices<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<o:p><font face="Calibri"> </font></o:p></p>
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<font face="Calibri">Mentors will lead “houses” that will be named for important historical figures. These houses will help connect us to our university’s history but also help create new traditions.<o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri">In the coming days you will see a marketing campaign encouraging students to apply to be mentors. We must hire mentors before students leave for the summer.<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 0);"> Please encourage students who
you see as especially qualified to apply for the position. They can find information about the position here:<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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<font face="Calibri"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 0);"><a href="http://www.tamuc.edu/academics/UniversityCollege/mentorgroups">http://www.tamuc.edu/academics/UniversityCollege/mentorgroups</a></span><o:p></o:p></font></p>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 12pt;">Thank you for your assistance, </span></o:p></p>
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<div><font color="#011993"><b style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: -webkit-standard;">Tabetha Adkins, PhD</b><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: -webkit-standard;"> </span></font></div>
<div><span style="color: rgb(1, 25, 147); font-family: -webkit-standard; background-color: rgb(255, 254, 254);">Dean of the University College</span></div>
<div><span style="color: rgb(1, 25, 147); font-family: -webkit-standard; background-color: rgb(254, 253, 253);">Associate Professor </span><span style="color: rgb(1, 25, 147); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: -webkit-standard;">of Literature
& Languages</span></div>
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<a target="_blank" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#011993">Tabetha.Adkins@tamuc.edu</font></a></p>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#011993">P.O. Box 3011 | Commerce, TX 75429-3011</font></span></p>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#011993">Tel. 903.886.5876</font></span></p>
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