SUCCESS Initiative

About the Program:

The motto of MassBay’s SUCCESS Initiative is a “Student-Centered Approach to College Success.”

Students are recruited to the SUCCESS cohort at MassBay Community College through targeted outreach that follows an opt-out approach. Eligible students are automatically enrolled unless they request not to join. All SUCCESS students at MassBay are supported by the program until they complete their program of transfer to another institution. By design, students are not made aware that they are receiving services through SUCCESS; instead each SUCCESS student is connected with a dedicated Advisor Coach who provides academic, coaching, and other support throughout the student’s career at MassBay. Other units that support SUCCESS at MassBay include financial aid, academic and transfer advising, academic support services, accessibility resources, and wellness counseling.

Student Eligibility

Students who are eligible for the SUCCESS program at MassBay include all part- or full-time students in a degree of certificate program who are a member of any of the cohort focus populations.

Cohort Focus Population

In line with the legislative intent to improve outcomes for the most vulnerable student populations, the following student populations are actively recruited for SUCCESS at MassBay:

Economically disadvantaged students
First-generation college students
Minoritized students (i.e., Hispanic or Latino, Black or African American, Cape Verdean, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and multi-racial students)
Students with disabilities
LGBTQIA+ students

Support Services

The following supports are available to SUCCESS students at GCC:

Proactive Coaching

Academic Advising

FAFSA Completion

Transfer Advising

Scholarship Advising

Case Management

Community Events

Publications

Discussion Groups

Peer Mentoring

Tutoring/study groups

Counseling

Workshops

Student Planning

Support Network

SUCCESS at MassBay is supported by five Advisors/Coaches and two Coaches. The SUCCESS Initiative at MassBay developed a tiered system to better align services with each student’s needs in order to meet the individual needs of each student. All coaching-like programs now fall under Academic Advising, Transfer, coaching, and case management are each organized by major.

SUCCESS receives funding through the Massachusetts legislature and is supported by the 15 state community colleges, the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges (MACC), the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (DHE), and the SUCCESS Leadership and Coordinating Committees.

SUCCESS at MassBay Community College