College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP)
Institution:
New Mexico State University
Academic Level:
Baccalaureate
Issue Area:
Retention
Year:
2008
Designation:
Examples of Excelencia
Designation:
Finalist
Key Personnel:
Bejarano, Cynthia
Address:
NMSU College Assistance Migrant Program
Address 2:
PO Box 30001
Address 3:
MSC 3487
City:
Las Cruces
State:
NM
Zip:
88003 In 2002, the Department of Education awarded New Mexico State University a College Assistance Migrant Program (NMSU-CAMP) grant to serve the educational needs of migrant and seasonal farm workers. Currently in its eleventh year of a third cycle of federal funding, the program has served 288 Latino students. CAMP is a residential program based in a centralized dormitory to facilitate access to university resources and to CAMP offices, study halls and computer labs. First-year mechanisms to retain students include: support from staff, peers and CAMP alumni through the Cultivating Opportunities through Mentoring and Promoting Academic Success (COMPAS) Peer Mentoring Program; family involvement; learning community residential living systems; a special course section of Freshmen Year Experiences (University 150) exclusively for CAMP students; educationally tailored workshops; art and cultural activities; and promoting farm worker advocacy through student engagement. The program also provides financial assistance for housing, meal plans, and student stipends for textbooks during their freshman year. Students major in each College across campus. For years 2012-2017, NMSU CAMP has a CAMP/STEM embedded experiences emphasis partnering with various STEM based programs across campus.
Goal/Mission:
The mission of NMSU-CAMP is to retain students at the end of the freshman year and enroll them into their second academic year. The long-term goal is to graduate CAMP alumni with Bachelor's degrees from NMSU.
Outcome:
One of CAMP's greatest accomplishments is the recruitment of Latino students to postsecondary education who otherwise would not have entered a college setting. From 2007-2012, 72% of students polled stated they would not have come to College without the assistance of NMSU CAMP. From 2007-2012, 85% of students who entered NMSU via CAMP finished their first full year of college and continued into their second year.
Of 290 students served, 288 of the students who have participated in CAMP since 2002 have been Latino. Forty-five sets of Latino siblings have been served (100 students) which makes NMSU CAMP a program that educates the CAMP farmworker family. Sixty-three CAMP alumni have graduated with four-year degrees from NMSU in various disciplines including: Biology, Accounting, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Animal Range Sciences, Criminal Justice, Government and Social Work to name a few; these students had an average GPA of 3.20 when they graduated. Also, fifty-one percent of NMSU CAMP graduates with a bachelor's degree did so between four and four and a half years. Eleven students have completed an Associate's degree and eight students have completed a masters' degree; two more are pursuing a doctoral degree and medical school.
Notes:
This program was also honored in 2006 as an Examples of Excelencia Semi-Finalist.
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