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March 28, 2024

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Spring Housing Guide

Firelands, University create new program called Firelands Pathway

The University has rolled out a new program this semester for students who didn’t meet the qualifications to attend the main campus.

The program is called Firelands Pathway and it allows students to attend the University while earning their credits through Firelands.

“All the main campuses in Ohio always have a problem with students where the academic preparation picture doesn’t necessarily make sense,” said Joseph Frizado, vice provost for academic operations and assessments. “However, there is evidence in these students to show good potential, so we wanted to create a situation where those students could start a college career and enhance their chance to be successful.”

Students who qualify for the Pathways program might have a good high school grade point average but not a good ACT/SAT score or vice-versa.

“First and foremost, they had to have a record sufficient to get admitted to the branch campus, but their record wasn’t as coherent or as strong as what we’d like to see at the main campus,” Frizado said about the qualifications of the program.

The program currently has 20 students enrolled this semester, and there are five classes offered to them without any ability to take any additional classes.

While the students are living on campus, the classes they are taking are through Firelands with Firelands instructors who drive from Huron to Bowling Green every week.

“They’re locked into their schedule and we provide 30 credit hours over both semesters that work for any major,” Frizado said. “It helps build community that they’re in the same classes, so we try and stack the deck so our students can be successful.”

Frizado said it’s important to avoid asking any student to start their college career and not achieve a college degree.

“We wanted to provide them with an opportunity for them to be successful,” Frizado said.

If the students complete a sufficient number of hours successfully then they would be able to stay on campus and take classes through the main campus next year, Frizado said.

Even though it’s still early, Frizado has high hopes for the program.

“We’re at the point where we’re starting to receive progress reports and I’ve heard more positives in terms of attitude and approach,” Frizado said. “We’re very hopeful that as the semester progresses there won’t be any problems.”

Michelle Simmons, assistant vice president for enrollment management, pointed to having the students on campus as an important factor for them.

“One of the reasons why we are having these students live on campus is because we know they get additional support,” Simmons said. “They have access to the student rec center, the library and the Learning Commons because they are BGSU students.”

Frizado has hopes to keep the program going next year, depending on the results.

“We will look at the success of the students, how we selected the students and try to improve the selection process,” Frizado said. “But as of right now, yes, our plans are to continue and to expand.”

The main goal of the Firelands Pathways Program is to give the students a chance for success, Simmons said.

“I think we’re trying to give students an opportunity. If you had your heart set on attending BGSU and didn’t meet some of the academic requirements, this was an option,” Simmons said. “They have an opportunity to come to BGSU and that’s what we’re focusing on: giving an opportunity to do that.”

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