<p>This article has some nice quotes from a student who went through summer transition (he was a Rainey Scholar…they also go to summer transition):</p>
<p>[Rainey</a> Program Offers Low-Income Students a Smooth Transition](<a href=“http://www.virginia.edu/uvatoday/newsRelease.php?id=3173]Rainey ”>http://www.virginia.edu/uvatoday/newsRelease.php?id=3173 )</p>
<p>My favorite part:
“I got here the first day to do the Rainey program, and instantly saw that the social bubble that I felt like I was on the outside of when I visited had completely disintegrated,” he said.</p>
<p>He formed a network of friends not only with the other students in the program, but also with the older students in his classes. He got a feel for the academic workload. His contacts with faculty and administrators instilled a sense of pride and ownership toward the University. He and his family worked out the ground rules for living away from home — “simple things,” he said, “like, ‘When are you going to call me? When am I going to call you, and how long are we going to talk?’”</p>
<p>When late August came and 13,000 students arrived on Grounds, Kyle was already well-established. In fact, he was able to help fellow first-years find their way around.</p>
<p>That’s a big deal, Most said. The Rainey students "become the go-to people, because they know where things are, they know how to do things, they know how to buy their books, they know how to navigate the system. And that’s empowering, to be the one person on your hall or floor or suite who’s got it all figured out.</p>
<p>“They’ll come back and say, ‘Everybody looks at me and says how do you know all this?’ That’s huge.”</p>
<p>Because the group is so small, it’s difficult to make any statistically sound conclusions about the program’s effectiveness, Most said. Anecdotally, “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” she said. “Everybody’s been glad they participated in the program.”
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