Omar Kana Awarded Most Improved Supplemental Instruction Leader, Hayden Hawkins and Malcolm Youngblood Awarded Outstanding New Supplemental Instruction Leaders
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Pictured L to R: LSU Division of Student Affairs Vice President, Kurt Keppler, SI Leaders, Omar Kana and Hayden Hawkins, LSU CAS Associate Director, Susan Saale, LSU Student Success Assistant Vice President, Melissa Brocato and SI Leader Malcolm Youngblood. |
The LSU Center for Academic Success (CAS) awarded biochemistry senior, Omar Kana as this year’s Most Improved Supplemental Instruction (SI) Leader [DL1] and Hayden Hawkins and Malcolm Youngblood as the Outstanding New SI Leaders.
Kana currently leads SI sessions for Physics and has been a SI leader for the past
two years. This
past year he approached his sessions differently noting advice from his mentors and
more experienced SI leaders. Additionally, Kana incorporated learning techniques
from the book Making It Stick.
Kana explained why he enjoyed being an SI Leader saying, “I enjoy helping students perform better in subjects that are often difficult for them. When one of my students has an 'aha' moment learning the material, that gives me an immense sense of pride and means I have done my job.”
Hayden Hawkins and Malcolm Youngblood, this year’s Outstanding New SI Leaders, have similar stories about their experiences this past year.
Hawkins, who was an SI Leader for Economics 2000 this year and plans to attend law
school next year, credits the SI program for his public speaking skills and teaching
abilities. Hawkins said, “What I have liked most about being an SI Leader, however,
is helping others overcome the obstacles that I also encountered while I was enrolled
in the class."
Youngblood, a senior in biological sciences and sociology, shares the same outlook.
He explained, “One of the best feelings is when we are covering difficult problems
or concepts and at the end of the session the students truly understand the material
we went over.”
"We are very proud of all three leaders. Each has made a mark in their own way. Omar has a done a great job of incorporating feedback and building on his experience. Hayden and Malcolm performed so well that they made the decision for New SI very difficult. So, we figured why fight it? Just pick both," said Assistant Director Matthew Mattox.
SI leaders are responsible for organizing study sessions with guidance from LSU instructors to aid students in learning course material. SI leaders are trainedreceive extensive training by LSU CAS staff on how they can best supplement courses, and how to better prepare students to learn.and have successfully completed the course they are instructing with a B letter grade or above The LSU CAS SI program is also internationally certified by the International Center for Supplemental Instruction, and is one of five state university programs in the country with the three-year certification.
To find out more about LSU CAS Supplemental Instruction and other free academic resources, please visit lsu.edu/cas.
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About LSU Center for Academic Success
The LSU Center for Academic Success (CAS) helps students achieve the higher levels
of learning necessary for academic success in college and beyond. CAS offers services
such as free tutoring, Supplemental Instruction (SI), Academic Coaching and various
academic programs and online services including a Virtual Learning Center. The LSU
CAS is internationally recognized for more than 25 years of work in student learning
and metacognition and is one of three university learning centers certified by the
National College Learning Center Association as a center of excellence.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Sarah Stafford
sstaf14@lsu.edu
LSU Student Success
137 Johnston Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803
office 225-578-7658 | mobile 225-436-1337