Whether it’s on the court en route to national championships or in the classroom on the path to academic success, Director of Student Academic Success Michelle Kent-Landes strives to bring out the best of students no matter the setting.
Helping to oversee tutoring resources offered to students, Michelle’s goal is to make sure any student who needs it receives quality resources and answers to their questions regarding academic success. It’s a passion that first developed while she earned her master’s degree in education at the University of Connecticut, concentrating in Sports Management.
“When working with the basketball team at UConn, they had an academic advisor who worked specifically with the team. I then saw how important and valuable that person was to them but I also thought about how rewarding of a career it would be to help students be academically successful. At the time, I also had fellow students and friends who struggled academically and could have greatly benefited from proper advising. Positions like these didn’t exist back then and I am extremely happy to see these positions continuing to grow at colleges and universities across the nation.”
Since that time she has held multiple positions in her travels, including Academic Advisor, Athletic Director for Academic Support and Student Services, Campus Wide Advisor, and Academic Success Specialist. Though the title or campus may have changed over time, the one thing that has remained constant is Michelle’s unwavering interest and passion to see students succeed.
As SUNY Poly’s Director of Student Academic Success, Michelle’s many responsibilities include overseeing the Learning Center, an academic support service available to all students.
“I am overseeing the tutoring that is being offered and I am also a resource to all students who have questions or concerns about their academic success. I will help with registration for classes, making them aware of who their advisor is, and communicating important academic deadlines that they need to be aware of.”
Located in the Cayan Library of SUNY Poly’s Utica campus, and open for use anytime during library hours, the Learning Center’s services include the one-on-one peer and professional tutoring Michelle oversees in a variety of academic disciplines, as well as writing assistance, reading and study skills support, English as a second language tutoring, and assistance with microcomputers. The Center also provides workshops on a variety of topics, as well as access to instructional software.
The Center also provides STAR-NY tutoring, an online service for all students across the SUNY system. Available in the evening from 7 p.m. to midnight, the service is often more convenient for students who can receive help from the comfort and ease of their dorm room or even off campus should they be unable to make it to the tutoring Center or during a time when the Center is closed. More on STAR-NY can be found at this link.
“Academics can be difficult at times, especially in areas a student might not have complete mastery over. Fortunately for them, we have a multitude of resources to help students be academically fit for the challenges ahead of them.”