Due to hurricanes, earthquakes and COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico students' academic performance has been severely affected, resulting in students obtaining lower scores on college entrance exams and increased high school dropout rates. Most students were not academically prepared for the transition to college. The Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus developed a Summer Bridge Program (SBP) in 2021 & 2022 to address the gaps in knowledge and skills of developmental mathematics education. In the second year, we combined courses with extracurricular activities to address students’ social-mental health, including peer tutoring, mindfulness, and stress management. The two SBP math courses were taught by the same faculty member who used the Educo Soft platform. Students spent an average of thirty-two hours using the platform during the two-week period of the program. Students who participated in 2021 SBP had lower average grades (76%) when compared to students from 2022 (84%). Students in SPB had a higher pass rate (100%) in math when compared to the institutional baseline (53 % passing rate) during the first year of college. Also, 100% students who participated the SBP were retained in fall when compared to the 69% institutional retention rate. Assessment of the SBP showed 100% of students agreed that the activities and workshops in SBP of 2022 were relevant and beneficial for their academic and personal development. Learning experiences using technology in our multidisciplinary SBPs provided Hispanic students the tools to strengthen their resilience and a guided path towards achieving their academic goals.

Authors:
Yogani Govender, Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
Karen. V. Zapata López, Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Yogani Govender is Dean of Science and Technology at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus in Puerto Rico

See this presentation on the full schedule – Schedule

Bookmark