TEMPUS Postsecondary Transition Program
A Unique Transitional Support Program
for Students with Learning Disabilities
Transitioning to College

For theTempus brochure, click here.

For theTempus cover letter, click here.

For theTempus application, click here.

We are excited to announce that beginning in the Fall of 2009. The Frostig Center will be offering TEMPUS, a semester-long transitional support program which aims to prepare students with learning disabilities for success in their post-secondary studies at college.

We believe that if students are given a systematic process for obtaining personal insight into their strengths and weaknesses, learn how to advocate for themselves, understand their preferred learning styles and strategies, gain information on how to succeed in college, learn effective study skills, and have an opportunity to share experiences and socialize with other students also going through the transition, that students will have a stronger foundation on which to begin their college experience. Step by step, confidence levels will be enhanced, students will learn how to re-frame encountered obstacles, and will learn how to establish more pro-active connections on campus towards successfully navigating, establishing, and accomplishing their goals.

Often, familiar supports (e.g. teachers, parents, friends) may not be as available to students in the new college environment requiring increased organization, motivation, responsibility, and assertiveness. At TEMPUS, students with learning disabilities will increase their awareness of the challenges of college and of the skills required to be successful. Students will also have the benefit of a social support group which will help them feel less isolated during their transition to college and give them access to friends as they explore the new college.

Students will have the opportunity to learn more about their strengths, study skills, learning styles, the essentials for the first few weeks of college, and other issues related to self-advocacy, social relationships, and emotional well-being. At TEMPUS students will be provided with an integrated curriculum designed to increase competence, self-efficacy, and success.

The Uniqueness of TEMPUS

There are several unique aspects of TEMPUS which students will enjoy. Three individualized assessment tools will allow students to gain personalized insight and awareness of their strengths and learning styles, and see to the results of their progress over the course of the semester.

Assessment tools will include:

LASSI: An assessment of students’ awareness and use of learning and study strategies related to skill, will, and self-regulation components of strategic learning. The focus is on both covert and overt thoughts, behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs that relate to successful learning which can be improved through educational interventions. The LASSI will be computer administered and students will enjoy learning about their: Attitude, motivation, time management, anxiety, concentration, information processing, test strategies, and overall strengths.

StrengthsQuest: Students will learn about their strengths and talents. The strengths philosophy is the belief that individuals are able to gain far more when they build upon their talents by concentrating on trying to improve areas of weakness.

Learning Styles Inventory: Students will learn about their individualized and preferred styles of learning to maximize their success at college.

Students will learn about:

• Adjusting well to the new college environment: Navigating the campus, making friends, finding great places to study, how to get involved
• Time management
• Stress management
• Ways to improve motivation
• Memory enhancement techniques
• Strengths and individual learning styles
• Effective study strategies to succeed in college
• Utilizing campus resources
• Strategies for working with the campus Disability
• Support Services office

How will students benefit from TEMPUS?

TEMPUS is designed to support students with learning disabilities in their transition from high school to college. Our goal is to provide students with support and instruction on the skills they need for academic success and to provide encouragement and direction as they’re experiencing college.

Students who participate in TEMPUS will benefit from:

• An increased understanding of the expectations and standards of college courses
• Instruction in critical academic and life skills
• Affiliation with other students with learning disabilities

TEMPUS Program Outline
Note: Most individual assignments will be done within the confines of class-time. It is not expected that students will work more than 1 hour each week outside of class. The number of sessions devoted to a particular topic is flexible and may be changed to accommodate the needs of the students.

Success

• Who am I? Why am I here? What should I be doing? Getting started at college!
• The differences between high school and college
• What is success?
• Employing “success strategies”
• Assessment
• Strengths
• Learning Skills Awareness
• Learning Styles

Social

• New student on campus: Making friends and creating a community
• TEMPUS buddy system
• Sharing the experiencing of transitioning with TEMPUS friends
• Effective communication strategies
• How to get involved on campus

Self-Advocacy

• Each student will meet with the Director of TEMPUS to discuss their individual profiles
• On-going discussion throughout program
• Knowing which accommodations are helpful to you and why
• How to ask for what you need
• Self-Disclosure; When and How
• Learning where the support systems are in college

Reading Strategies

• Learning about the different type of texts at the university level (textbooks, journals, articles)
• Highlighting techniques
• Active reading strategies
• Knowing what to do with material once you have read it
• Learning to understand inference (Reading between the lines)

Study Skills

• Attributes of a successful student
• Attitudes and beliefs
• Strategies (Notetaking, getting organized, listening skills, test-taking skills)
• Environment-setting strategies
• Mind-engaging strategies
• Learning about the resources at your college
• Memory tricks and tips for memorizing, learning, and studying

Time Management

• Getting organized
• Using a planner, monthly calendar, and maximizing time
• Avoiding procrastination
• Setting priorities & establishing ambitious, realistic, and obtainable goals
• Planning your time & evaluating your plan
• Mapping out the semester
• Knowing how much time things really take to do

Stress Management

• Dealing with emotional, behavioral, and physical stress
• Proactive, reactive, palliative, curative
• Adaptation strategies
• Symptom reduction strategies
• Problem solving strategies
• Prevention Strategies
• Re-framing obstacles & identifying learning moments

Where is TEMPUS located?
TEMPUS will be located on the campus of The FROSTIG CENTER in Pasadena, California.
Individual counseling and coaching may be arranged at an office location in the San Fernando Valley if more convenient than the Pasadena location on Thursdays.

When do students meet?
Classes are on Saturday mornings throughout the semester in a group format. One-on-one counseling and coaching appointments are available by request on Thursdays and Fridays. Saturday morning workshops run between 9am-12pm and individual counseling appointments are for sixty (60) minutes.

How do I apply to TEMPUS?
TEMPUS is available to students with a learning disability who have graduated from high school and are beginning college.

• A psychological report documenting a primary diagnosis of specific learning disabilities
• An average of C or higher in 12th grade
• A personal statement (100-300 words) indicating why you want to attend TEMPUS
• A completed application to TEMPUS for Fall 2009

What does TEMPUS cost for the semester?

Meet the Director of TEMPUS

Elyse Chaplin is the former Assistant Dean of Students & Director of Disability Support Services at Brown University. Elyse’s career has focused on supporting and facilitating student success among students with learning disabilities at the college level over the past twenty years as a: Professor, Dean, Counselor, Transition Specialist, Success Coach, and director of disability services. Elyse holds a Masters degree in Learning Disabilities and Transition from the George Washington University in Washington, DC, and did her undergraduate studies in psychology at York University in Toronto, Canada. Elyse is currently a PhD Candidate at the University in Toronto as well as a candidate for a doctorate in Higher Education from The George Washington University.

Elyse knows first-hand what it’s like to be a student with a learning disability and has spent her career supporting students along their journeys, helping students to realize their potential and achieve their goals both personally and academically. Elyse’s teaching style is engaging, creative, motivating, informative, energizing, and fun.

Message from the Director of The Frostig Center

The Frostig Center is delighted to offer this new program. It is a challenge for students with learning disabilities to move beyond the nurturing environment of small high school classes and supportive staff into “the real world”. We have always known something was needed-a program that would help students make the leap towards independence and self reliance. Elyse Chaplin is just the person to provide this help. Given her background and experience, she is uniquely positioned to understand and help young adults attain the success they crave. We know that the Tempus Program will provide the assistance that students with learning disabilities need in order to move forward with their lives.

Bennett Ross, Ph.D.
Executive Director
The Frostig Center

FrostigCenter
971 North Altadena Drive
Pasadena, CA 91107
Office: 626/791-1255
After hours: 818/447-2866
E-mail: Elyse@LDSUCCESS.com