By Christian Contreras and Marvin Villanueva, March 7, 2023
ASI and PolyTransfer’s Transfer Tuesday festivities, lasting the month of February, concluded Feb. 28. with Transfer Celebration Night, a send-off bash designed to foster Cal Poly Pomona’s transfer community.
Held in the Bronco Student Center, the event offered food, games and PolyTransfer mentorship resources to transfer students who attended. The event gave students the opportunity to socialize and meet each other through introductory activities, such as a speed-friending game.
“The transfer population is quite large at CPP,” said Christian Rivera, assistant for academic support & learning services. “I think it’s important to acknowledge those student bodies just so that every student, no matter where they have their sense of identity, finds a sense of belonging on the campus.”
Rivera explained the Transfer Tuesday events are necessary for transfer students as they allow transfer students to construct peer groups they can relate to. He believes through peer groups, students are able to improve the quality of their educational experience at CPP.
Transfer Celebration Night aimed to create these relationships between transfer students through their speed-friend making activity. Every table at the event held a basket containing paper slips of questions, and attendees were encouraged to pair up with one another to generate conversations. After every two minutes, coordinators made everyone switch partners to get attendees to meet as many people as possible.
“I really liked the speed-friending opportunity because I got to meet people from different majors that I wouldn’t normally meet in my classes,” said Kiana Jokar, a political science transfer.
PolyTransfer mentors also joined in to personally get in touch with transfer students and to promote the organization’s services and their mentorship program.
PolyTransfer Peer Mentor Amaris Bellord explained PolyTransfer’s goal is to advocate for transfer students and help them meet their goals. As a former transfer student and mentee, Bellord explained events like these are crucial for transfer students, as they push away the stigma that transferring from a community college is a lesser path and show that many transfer students succeed in their studies.
“I think especially when you transfer into a four-year, it’s really easy to fall into the mindset of ‘I don’t belong here,’” Bellord said. “But most community college students actually when they transfer into a four-year are more likely to graduate than people who went directly to a four-year out of high school.”
Through the mentorship program, transfer students can check in with people who have gone through similar experiences, find reassurance and resources that will help them stay on track with their academics, Bellord explained.
Apart from PolyTransfer, the event also acknowledged other resources students can take advantage of, such as graduation cords and scholarships. Dora Lee, PolyTransfer director of academic support and learning services, urged the students in attendance to submit their applications for two transfer student scholarships — one of which is worth up to $3,500.
“I think it (Transfer Tuesday) gives them a sense of community, and they can also learn about opportunities,” Jokar said. “For example, we learned today about the scholarship fest and that’s good to know how you can support yourself and make sure you’re paying your tuition and other fees.”
The event created an atmosphere for transfer students to get together and engage in fun activities with their fellow peers.
“Everyone was super kind. I like that we had opportunities to eat, talk and bond with each other,” Jokar said. “I also liked how the staff was involved. It didn’t feel intimidating.”
Additional details about PolyTransfer’s transfer support programs can be found on their webpage, on CPP’s website or by visiting the orange counter in the Student Service Building.
Feature image courtesy of Christian Contreras