In an effort to increase retention, Syreeta Green, director of equity inclusion and student affairs, presented five students with the First Steps to Success Program on Sept. 13 in the Sunwatcher Clubhouse.

According to Green, First Steps to Success is a program that is geared towards first generation students of color but opened to all students on campus. She explained that there is an achievement gap in first generation college students of color, and the program helps close that gap and increases retention rate.

“The goal is to have students stay at MSU and get involved with other programs as well,” Green said.

To achieve an elite education, Green gave tips on how to keep engaged in class. She said that it is good for professors to see attentiveness and explained the importance of a planner.

Planners encourage time management, Green said, and helps students with growth in studies and college experience. She ended the session with the question “Do you have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset?”

Valencia Tamper, visiting assistant professor of Spanish, also gave some “do’s and don’t’s” of college. Two freshman that attended shared what they got out of the program.

“There is no bad education: education is knowledge, and knowledge is power,” Kaylen Melton, exercise physiology, said.

“I feel more prepared,” Jahari Hill, exercise physiology, said. “I know how to attack my freshman year.”