What does the Counterbalance Project involve?

Counterbalance Support Staff

Counterbalance provides wrap-around supportive services for our students in a variety of forms, to help them be successful in achieving their educational and career goals. These supports come in the form of aiding in academic development, assisting students with basic college requirements, and helping to motivate students toward the successful completion of their credential here at A-B Tech. Counterbalance has several support staff working for this program including College Navigators, a Success Coach, and a Career Coach. The good news is, no matter where you are in your enrollment process, you have access to all these support staff. Also, your College Navigator can also help connect you with additional services and resources that the college offers to you for free. To learn more about each of these support staff click the links below:

If you are a student who owes a past-due balance to A-B Tech, you will be contacted by our Enrollment Specialist. They are there to talk with you about coming back to school, discuss your educational goals, help you get re-enrolled, and see if Counterbalance would be a good program to help you complete your credential at A-B Tech. If you decide to participate in the Counterbalance program, the Enrollment Specialist will get you connected with a College Navigator, so you can complete the intake process and begin participating in all that Counterbalance has to offer.

College Navigators provide are here to help you with anything and everything that goes into navigating the landscape of college. You are required to have monthly check-ins with your College Navigator from the moment you re-enroll/enroll at A-B Tech and begin participating in Counterbalance until you complete a credential.

Now you may be wondering what college is navigation. Well, it is not just a support service; it is a long-term investment our team of College Navigators makes to support your credential attainment. At the core of college navigation is the supportive relationship between you and your college navigator who will serve, at varying times, as a teacher, advocate, coach, and mentor.

College navigation includes developing career and education plans, preparing you for the college experience, and helping you access and persist in your postsecondary education programs, coupled with ongoing coaching and support. We can help with:

  • Understanding pathways, educational planning, finding the right major, etc.
  • Learning how to navigate college, understanding the syllabus, navigating classroom expectations and experiences, time management, etc.
  • Connecting you with academic tutoring and support
  • Connecting you to Disability Services
  • Learning how to navigate Moodle, OneDrive, Self-Service, etc.
  • General computer tutorials such as drafting an email, file/folder organization, saving documents, etc.
  • Exploring childcare/parenting resources and activities
  • Exploring community resources such as housing, food share options, social service agency information, or referrals
  • We can discuss the extracurricular activities A-B Tech offers (e.g., student organizations, student government, intramural athletics, etc.)
  • We can provide basic financial coaching and budgeting tips, and referrals to additional financial resources
  • We can connect you to all diversity and inclusion programming (e.g., events, Diversity Committee, Multicultural Student Leadership Association (MSLA), Queer the Way, etc.)
  • We can provide mentoring, as well as provide referrals to Dr. Fox’s mentorship program
  • We can help you with navigating campus or provide you with a campus tour
  • We can connect you with A-B Tech’s free personal counseling services (e.g., anxiety, depression, ADHD, etc.)
  • We help with purchasing required textbooks and class supplies
  • We can discuss study-abroad opportunities, and connect you with the individuals who are organizing the events
  • We can connect you with Veterans’ Services
  • We can show you all the wellness/campus healthcare options A-B Tech offers
  • And much more!

If you are a curriculum student, you will also be assigned a success coach who will help you with any of your academic goals during the first 8 weeks of your first semester enrolled at A-B Tech. You will receive weekly contact from the success coach just to make sure everything is going well.

If you are interested in pursuing a continuing education course or sharpening your skills for the workforce, you will be assigned a career coach who will contact you bi-monthly to help you learn about career options in the Continuing Education division for short-term program options and career guidance.

Counterbalance Program Requirements

The aim of Counterbalance is to provide support to help you find success at A-B Tech and beyond. In that spirit, we have listed the program requirements. These requirements are not meant to be stumbling blocks of any sort; instead, they are meant to provide guides for your journey. Carefully read the following statements to make sure that you understand and are willing to commit to the program requirements.

  • I am required to attend the Counterbalance orientation.
  • I will submit the Counterbalance Performance and Success Update by the end of each month until the rollout of Watermark (software designed to automatically allow my Success Team to have access to my grades, educational plan, advising, etc.).
  • I will meet with my College Navigator at least once a month via Zoom, Teams, Watermark, email, or in person with questions, progress reports, etc. I will plan with my College Navigator the types of communication that will provide the most support to my goals.
  • If I go more than 30 days without speaking with my College Navigator or providing my Counterbalance Performance and Success Update, I will automatically be placed on Level One Warning.
  • I am required to reach out to my College Navigator if my term grade point average (GPA) is in jeopardy of falling below 2.0 or if I need to withdraw from a course. If I stop participating in, or going to class and receive a failing grade, I will automatically be placed on Level One Warning.
  • I acknowledge that my funding might be affected by my academic performance in the previous semester, failure to meet program requirements, and other relevant factors at the discretion of my College Navigator.
  • I will respond within 48 hours to any correspondence from my Success Coach. Some types of correspondence might include sharing success stories, asking/answering questions, etc.
  • I will respond within 48 hours to any correspondence from my Economic & Workforce Development Outreach Navigator. Some types of correspondence might include career options available through short-term programs, job pathways available with career options, etc.
  • I will participate in at least one Counterbalance promoted activity each semester (e.g., Counterbalance workshops, DEI sessions, mentoring sessions, student club meetings, student club meetings, student festivals, etc.).
  • I will demonstrate that I have utilized at least one A-B Tech student resource during my time enrolled at A-B Tech (student resources include the writing center, the tutoring lab, student services, etc.).
  • I will complete the end-of-the-semester survey about my participation in Counterbalance.
  • I am required to earn 100 points on the Counterbalance Success Rubric (the rubric is based on the requirements listed above).

 

Counterbalance Financial Support

Additionally, if you qualify for financial support the Counterbalance Project can work with you to pay the financial debt that is owed to the college so that money is no longer a barrier.

Funding available to students who qualify for the Counterbalance Project includes:

 

Up to $2,500 per year to relieve outstanding balances for students who are blocked from enrolling due to past debt and agree to re-enroll and participate in intensive student support services provided by Counterbalance.

Up to $4,632 per year for students who have either re-enrolled following debt forgiveness or have stopped out and agreed to participate in intensive student support services provided by Counterbalance.

Up to $1,500 per year for students who agree to participate in intensive student support services provided by Counterbalance.

Are available in the amount of up to $1,500 per year, to provide emergency relief for students who agree to participate in intensive student support services provided by Counterbalance who encounter financial stressors outside of tuition and fees that put them at risk of stop-out such as housing, childcare, technology, and transportation expenses.

****Please keep in mind that there is a limited amount of funding available for the Counterbalance Project. Funding is processed on a case-by-case basis, however, if you do not qualify the Counterbalance Project staff will be happy to connect you with other financial resources.

What you should know is that in most cases, the debt forgiveness funding is only for students who had a balance owed to A-B Tech prior to 2020, but exceptions can be made. If you are on the list of students who are about to be dropped from classes due to nonpayment, you may qualify for deregistration relief funds. Typically, if you qualify for debt-forgiveness or deregistration relief funds, you will be contacted about Counterbalance by one of our staff members. However, if you are a currently enrolled student or a student looking to enroll and need financial support, you may still qualify for Counterbalance funding to help you cover the cost of attending college without a financial burden, along with additional customized support services from our staff.