Sharee St.Louis Smith

For the past twenty years, I have worked as a College Access Coordinator in the Federal TRIO program Commonwealth Educational Opportunity Center (CEOC) where I have assisted people who are trying to further their education. As a first generation, non-traditional student, I understand how daunting it can be to further an education when there is no one you know who has been through that process. The transition to student can be stressful. It is my job to help alleviate the stress by assisting the person through admissions, financial aid, career counseling, degree selection, and course requirements among other duties as needed. I can not do this job successfully without the assistance of strong community partners in the six counties that I currently serve. The ability to provide referrals to other agencies and community partners is a necessity for ensuring the academic success of the student.