Going Above and Beyond for UConn Students
3 min read
Meet the staff members who are changing lives at the UConn Center for Students with Disabilities.
Name: Christine Wenzel
Position: Associate Director
“Students’ success is often measured by their GPA, however, we know that for many students, it is those things not directly measured by their GPA that retain them at the University. Beyond Access works with students on creating strategies to help them navigate life in and out of the classroom. The individual growth I have seen from students doing the program cannot be quantified and have served them well beyond their time at UConn.“
Name: Sophie Rodenbush
Position: Strategy Instructor
“For me, the biggest impact I’ve seen working with students in BA is that it gives them the strategies to work toward their goals, based on their strengths. People are more likely to use strategies that work for them and play to their strengths, which is why I think the personalized aspect of BA is so important.”
Name: Rachel Finlaw
Position: Strategy Instructor
Name: Emily Sears
Position: Strategy Instructor
Name: Benjamin Briskin
Position: Strategy Instructor
“What I have seen to be the biggest impact of the program: In my experience with the Beyond Access program, its impact has positively affected students in several ways. Students grow more comfortable being at UConn and feel supported through weekly meetings and the relationships built over the course of the semester(s). And students learn about themselves, in terms of the strategies that guide how they effectively study, complete work, and everything in between. The Beyond Access program helps students navigate through the challenges of any given semester, and equips them with resources for problem-solving for any situation that comes up.”
Name: Sundari Birdsall
Position: Strategy Instructor
“From my perspective, BA helps students get out of ineffective habits and helps them build better ones. Having a Strategy Instructor to thoroughly examine and critique how a student is planning, studying, and managing their time truly does help students waste less time and get better grades with less effort. For incoming freshmen, I have seen BA be especially helpful because it provides consistency; students can count on talking to someone who will listen and has knowledge of campus resources. Honestly, this kind of goal-focused consultation would have been helpful to me when I was in college!”
You can impact the lives of students at UConn by supporting programs like Beyond Access.