SUNY Polytechnic Institute is one of 25 SUNY campuses statewide that opted in to the ASAP|ACE program to improve retention and graduation rates.

“This is my second year in the ACE program. I really like it so far,” said Destinee McClian, a sophomore at SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

McClain says being a part of the Advancing Completion Through Engagement, better known as the ACE program, has helped her navigate her college career.

“Having anther advisor that isn’t just like, 'oh, these are the classes that you need to take.' It’s someone that I can actually sit there and talk to about my problems, any issues that I have for school or outside of school,” said McClain.

ACE is a product of the ASAP Program, or Advancing Success in Associate Pathways, which was started with the Community Colleges of NY in 2007.

This past spring, ASAP|ACE expanded to the SUNY system. The focus of the program is to help underrepresented students obtain a degree.

“So we’ve got now 13 community colleges now that are doing ASAP, 12 of our four-year campuses that are doing ACE. We’re serving just over 4,000 students and our hope is over the next few years to grow the program to 10,000 students,” said SUNY Chancellor John King.

King says Gov. Kathy Hochul’s effort to invest $75 million in a SUNY transformation fund was a tremendous help for them to scale up the ASAP|ACE program to help more students graduate on time.

Dawn Burns is the ACE program director at SUNY Poly. She says when the program launched last spring, they only had 31 students and now they are up to 150 and there are students on the waitlist.

“College is tough to navigate, it’s financially challenging, it’s mentally challenging. For a lot of our students, it’s a new frontier, they don’t have parents that have gone to college,” said Burns.

ACE is for Pell-eligible students. It provides wraparound support and an array of resources including financial assistance with textbooks, groceries, transportation and even tuition support.

“Prior to joining the ACE program, I had to buy those books on my own and that way not a good experience,” said Hender Hernandez, a sophomore at SUNY Poly.

Hernandez says it’s because of ACE that he’s taken advantage of so many resources, which has shaped his college experience. 

“I think that students like to know that there’s somebody in their corner that will listen and just try to work out the issues that happen,” said Burns.