Roxbury Community College is committed to ensuring that every student who matriculates can feel successful. RCC’s SUCCESS (Supporting Urgent Community College Equity Through Student Services) Program is part of the Commonwealth’s overall SUCCESS initiative to support underserved and historically underrepresented students. SUCCESS at RCC supports students, who could benefit from wrap-around supports that will keep them on track for retention and graduation. A core function of SUCCESS is to serve as a primary advocate for students, helping them navigate the institution and overcome challenges.
Boston Globe Editorial - SUCCESS Program
Through the SUCCESS Program, RCC is enhancing wrap around support for our students by providing comprehensive, personalized support to SUCCESS students to help them transition, persist, and achieve their academic goals. Support such as academic advising, coaching, training, and self-empowerment are tailored to each student's unique needs, strengths, and goals. Some of the students who successfully complete their first year will serve as mentors for students who will participate next semester.
A critical enhancement has been the intentional reformation of responsive student empowerment groups. Retention and persistence rates are strongly correlated with a student's sense of belonging, validation, and psychological safety. When students are recruited into empowerment groups led by staff who share their cultural background, it immediately reduces the cognitive and emotional energy spent navigating unfamiliar or potentially biased systems. This shared identity fosters an environment of trust and psychological safety, making students more comfortable disclosing the non-course-related concerns that impact their persistence.
These groups operate using a trauma-informed lens, recognizing that many students face ongoing trauma. The groups build trust by creating clear expectations and consistent, reliable support. The goal of the program is to develop peer support through staff mentoring, thereby creating community where students realize their struggles are not isolated incidents. The groups will focus on student strengths, giving them voice, supported by leaders who often possess a deeper, lived understanding of the barriers that disproportionately affect RCC students.
