Today we're talking about services offered to low-income students who attend Missouri State. Do you have any statistics you can share about the number of students enrolled at the university that are low income?
Williams: Well, we have a number of programs that are called Access and Success programs. And there's — it's it depends on the program that you're looking at. We have Bears Lead, for example. This is a program that is set aside for students to really get an opportunity for those that are Pell eligible or first-generation students. We have about 425 individuals in that program, anywhere from the first year, second year and third year. But then we have close to 500 in all our other access programs.
I know there are programs available to help students overcome barriers to education. What are some of the ways the university helps students from low-income families financially to get an affordable education?
Williams: So, we have a number of Access program scholarships. We work with Big Brother, Big Sisters, the Boys and Girls Club, College Bound, Girl Scouts, KC scholars. We have a number of those programs that are explicitly outlined on our website. So, when students come with a need, we share with them those resources. And we have personnel within our student services that sit down there with them and really encourage them to look at those scholarships. We also inform them about the services that we have on our campus. We know that not all students come from the same background. So, if there's a food need, we have a number of programs. We do have a Bears Pantry that's very popular on our campus. This is open to students, faculty and staff where if they have certain food needs that they have or if they're not, you know, their job didn't get the paycheck in so that they could have food, we can provide that. We also started this last September, a program called Bear Share. As you know, we have a number of banquets on campus. And every time, there's all this food left over. And so, our students that are of need can put their name on a list. And what happens when we have a banquet, they'll get an email and say, it's ending here, bring some Tupperware and we'll give them a serving of the food. And so, they really like that. Low-income students sometimes need legal help. We have something called Bearisters and that's where they can get free law care or law advice. We have Bear Essentials, which sometimes first-generation students don't know how to get the financial help they do — that they need. And so, we have um, free financial help for those individuals.
So, it sounds like quite a few services. And I know that there's the Office of Access and Success, which helps first-generation, low-income students stay in school and finish their degrees. Can you tell me a little bit about that office?
Williams: That office runs all of these programs. And so, they're located in the (Meyer) library. And when you go over there, and we also have the student resource center, which is in the student union. So anytime that you need help, you can reach out to each of those entities and sit down and explain what your situation is and they'll get you to the right person. And so, within the SRC, within the student union, you have the Bear Cave Closet, so you have a need for professional dress, if you need to go interview and you don't have a suit and a tie, or if you don't have professional where they can help you with that, or if you come here from a warmer climate and you need a coat, they'll have that for you too. If you're getting towards tax season, they'll refer you to our accountancy program and share with you the free tax preparation that you can have there. So, it's a very inclusive process where you just let us know what your needs are and then we get you to the right place.
How important are all of these things in helping students to stay on that path to getting their degree?
Williams: It's really important as our students. You'll see, when you run the statistics of individuals that are persisting to a degree, the number one barrier is finances. And so, when we pull our students that are stopping out for a time, it's nine times out of 10 about the finances and about having the resources. And so, we do everything possible to share with them opportunities for scholarship. And our foundation does such a good job in soliciting new scholarships for our students. And this provides them a way to finish their degree.
And can you talk about how getting a degree can help break cycles of poverty in a family?
Williams: Yes. If you look at all the data, any individual that has a degree, they can make up to $1 million more in a lifetime. And then you look at the not so obvious that, the data, that those that have a degree are more likely to be more engaged in their society, more engaged in their PTA for their children, more engaged to have children, more engaged to be involved in civic opportunities within their area, more engaged to vote. And so, it has a significant impact on our society when somebody has a college degree.
What are some ways that public or faculty and staff on campus can help students from low-income families who are going to school to better their future and, like we just talked about, possibly break the cycle of poverty?
Williams: I think it's really important for our faculty/staff to be educated with regards to the resources that are on our campus. They are the front lines. They are meeting these students every single day. They are seeing and they're being aware of certain situations in the classroom. And I think having the awareness of, you know, where can they go get food or how can that staff or faculty member volunteer? We have a number of faculty and staff that have certain days where they go and they volunteer in the pantry. We also want to make sure that our students are not ashamed or embarrassed, that the faculty and staff can really help them, that there's many people on our campus that are using these resources. There's no shame in using these resources. This is why they're here. We — our goal is to get the student to graduate and to be successful and then to contribute to society.
Well, I'm glad to hear that. There are a lot of services it sounds like, on the Missouri State campus to help students who might be struggling. Thank you for coming by and talking to me today.
Williams: Thank you.
