Panthers Awarded $71K in Student Success Incentive

Psychology major Marlon Galindo Escobar hopes to one day become a neurosurgeon after graduating from Chaffey College and transferring to the University of California, Riverside.

But he knows the expenses needed to reach that goal will be daunting.

“When you’re a full-time student, even if you’re working or have support, money is tight and every bit helps,” he said.

That’s why Chaffey College in the fall rolled out a pilot program aimed at helping students graduate on time without spending money on classes they don’t need. And it comes with a monetary incentive.

It’s called the Chaffey College Student Success Incentive, which rewards students for meeting with a counselor to complete an education plan or check to make sure they’re on track to graduate.

The college awarded more than $71,000 to 1,421 students in the pilot phase of the program.

“Studies have shown that students who meet at least once with a college counselor have higher success rates than students who do not,” said Chaffey College Superintendent/President Henry D. Shannon. “When students reach these benchmarks, not only do they receive $50, but they also get a sense of pride knowing they are on the right track to achieve their academic goals.”

The incentive funds came from a $25 million gift that Chaffey received in 2021 from philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott.

Chaffey Counseling Faculty Fabiola Espitia said students have expressed gratitude for the incentive, and it has definitely encouraged more students to come in for help. In addition to benefitting from completing education plans, students have seen the value of getting a graduation check too.

“It allows them to catch any missing requirements, rather than waiting until graduation and finding out they are missing units,” Espitia said. “Hopefully this will eliminate some of those disappointments.”

Michael Bolis, a political science major who also met with counseling as part of the incentive, expressed gratitude for the program.

“This incentive has helped me because usually we struggle to find any money to pay for our education and other expenses while being full time at Chaffey,” he said.