A Q&A with CUNY ASAP Alum Dominic Jessup Reid,CUNY John Jay ’13

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Whether you’re an international student new to the U.S., you’re ateenage mom seeking to balance the twin responsibilities of academiaand motherhood or, like Dominic Jessup Reid, you may just feel a bitdaunted by the question “Am I ready to go to college?”, agroundbreaking, multi-year initiative from the City University of NewYork is garnering national attention for the success it’s exhibited thusfar at helping a wide cross-section of students achieve their college-going dreams.

“Six years ago, CUNY decided to confront the high dropout rate at itscommunity colleges with the ASAP initiative,” University ofCalifornia, Berkeley Public Policy Professor David L. Kirp wroteearlier this month in a New York Times op-ed, “How to Help CollegeStudents Graduate.”

“The results are stunning,” Kirp concluded.

Indeed, Kirp is correct. An independently-commissioned MDRC studyof the ASAP program in December found that “After the first semester,ASAP consistently increased the likelihood that students would enroll in each subsequent semester by 8 to10 percentage points.”

Also, as Kirp points out, “56 percent of the first two cohorts of more than 1,500 students have graduated,compared with just 23 percent of a comparable group that didn’t have the same experience. What’s more,most of those graduates are currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree.”

While Reid is just one of CUNY ASAP’s many success stories, his journey typifies what’s all too often atale of resilience commonly experienced by capable students who face self-doubt about their abilities, setagainst the stark backdrop of a public school system that does little to offer college guidance to its most-needy students. (Click here to listen to other ASAP success stories.)

We spoke with him about his college-going journey, his decision to take the high road and seek out andtake advantage of extra help through the ASAP program, and what advice he would offer to other studentsin his situation.

Jessup, the class is yours…

Q. To start off, can you talk for a bit about the circumstances, in your high school or outside ofschool, that led you to participating in CUNY’s Accelerated Study In Associate Programs in the firstplace? In your opinion, how much help would you say that you actually needed before undertakingregular college-level coursework?

There were two questions that kept haunting me during my junior year of high school. Am I ready to go tocollege? How am I going to pay for it?”

A. There were two questions that kept haunting me during my junior year of high school. Am I ready to goto college? How am I going to pay for it? Even after getting accepted to a couple of schools I knew that Iwas not prepared. My academic skills were put to the test when I was given an opportunity to attend asummer program at a SUNY school and it verified how unprepared I still was. Since I wasn’t ready forcollege-level work, I decided that to make the financial sacrifice of taking out student loans wasn’t a burdenI willing to make quite yet—especially coming from a low-income family. After coming to the realization thatI needed assistance, I began searching for other schools and programs that I can start with to betterprepare myself, and that’s when I found the ASAP—or rather it found me. I had actually never heard of theprogram before, but I was introduced to it by one of the admissions counselors at Borough of ManhattanCommunity College upon enrolling there. She told me there was this new program that I qualified for thatwas specifically designed to assist students in need financially and academically. To this day, it’s one of thebest decisions I’ve ever made.

Q. After ASAP, I know your first stop was CUNY’s Borough of Manhattan Community College,where you earned your associate’s before transferring to John Jay College and graduating lastMay. Can you talk a bit about the confidence, and specifically the sense of college readiness, thatASAP gave you to help make the transition—and your earning your bachelor’s degree—a reality?

A. ASAP gave me the confidence and knowledge that I needed to have a better college experience. I wasmore comfortable with basic aspects of college-level work and culture, such as registering for classes,analyzing your transcript, filing for financial aid. Most of all, I was more academically prepared.

ASAP offered us tutoring at a variety of convenient hours, and I was introduced to many students like mewho came from a similar background and who were experiencing similar struggles. The program alsoassigned me a counselor I spoke with regularly, and if there was ever something I didn’t understand or hadproblems, academically or personally, I always had someone that I could go to. College can be stressful attimes, and sometimes you just need an ear to listen. ASAP really helped me transition to John Jay withconfidence and allowed me to earn my Bachelor’s in Computer Information System in PublicAdministration.

Q. I’ve been openly critical of the New YorkCity Department of Education in the pastfor not investing nearly enough money inhelping our young people with collegereadiness—which, along with careerreadiness, is half of its stated mission.Speaking as a student who relativelyrecently graduated from the schoolsystem, what would you say are some ofthe biggest weaknesses in our schools asfar as preparing students for the college-going experience?

College isn’t promoted enough to students. At a lot of high schools in New York, college is presented assomething that you could do, but not really something that you should do.”

A. College isn’t promoted enough to students. At a lot of high schools in New York, college is presented assomething that you could do, but not really something that you should do. Higher education is highlyadvised and should actually be introduced to students at a younger age. College isn’t just academics, it’salso the social aspect. You get to meet all types of people that you can possibly call lifelong friends and/orbusiness partners, share ideas and find your identity by being introduced to things you’ve neverexperience before. College preparation is definitely something that should be emphasized more in the

curriculum.

Q. One of the things that sets ASAP apart from other college preparedness and/or remediationefforts is the many non-academic services it helps students with, such as tuition fee waivers, freetextbooks and Metrocards. How important are these things to a student’s chances of staying oncourse?

A. The financial support that ASAP provided played a major role in my academic journey. Living in NewYork City is far from cheap, especially when you’re coming from a low-income family. If you don’t have ascholarship that can assist you, or if your financial aid only covers a limited amount of what you need tostay enrolled, balancing things can get tricky fast. College expenses can be discouraging at times, andASAP allowed me to be prepared for every class that I took, from purchasing my books to helping mecommute to school. It allowed me to stay on course because I knew I was prepared and didn’t have toworry about how I was going to get things done.

It’s about dedication and willpower. It isn’t easy, but it can be done. If you know college is for you, do yourresearch. Information is so easily accessible in today’s world, take advantage of it.”

Q. What advice would you give to a young person who knows in their heart of hearts that a collegedegree is vital to their future job prospects and life outcomes but may be doubting their ability tothrive in such a challenging environment? What’s motivated and/or encouraged you?

Young people should know that all is possible. It’s about dedication and willpower. It isn’t easy, but it canbe done. If you know college is for you, do your research. Information is so easily accessible in today’sworld, take advantage of it. My family was my motivation, it was because of them that I went to college.They wanted better opportunities for me, and I didn’t want to let them down. If not for your family, then do itfor yourself. You get a sense of accomplishment and you learn so much—academically as well aspersonally.

Also read…

• More Graduates: More Students Thrive with Help of CUNY ASAP Program (News)• A Renewed Approach to Community College Persistence (Opinion)