Oak Hall provides a study place for students

Also provide PAAs

Luke Landgraf

Word count:537

story 3

In the basement of Oak Hall Dorm on the BSU campus, the academic resource center (ARC) is a place where students can go for help with their homework. The people who operate the ARC are the Peer Academic Assistance (PAA).  There are two PAAs that live on each floor of oak hall.  They are there to help students whenever needed.

“Not very many people know about the ARC that don’t live in oak hall,” Said Jacob Caron who is a PAA that lives on 3B of oak hall.  “Other people only think that the ARC is only for residences that live in oak,” said Jacob “this is a misunderstanding, it’s for anyone on campus.  The only people who really use the ARC are the residences that live in the dorm.”

The ARC is open Monday 7-9 pm Tuesday –Sunday 7-11 but closed on Saturday.  There are computers in the ARC that allow the PAAs to help edit papers and other things.  Other than getting help with your homework in the ARC, they can help improve your study habits and show little tricks to taking tests.

Another thing that PAAs provide is a peer evaluation sheet. That exercise they do with the residence on the floor is to help them set goals, they set goals and help the residences achieve them.  It’s also them asking what kind of class that students have so when it comes to finals week that they can set up a study group with you and anyone else on the floor or even the building. 

The first year that the ARC opened was in 1996 and that was located in Maple Hall. Maple Hall is located across the court yard form Oak.  The ARC was re-opened in 2008 in oak hall, when the first year residential experience (FYRE) moved to Oak. 

The FYRE program is an option program located in Oak that really works with the freshman that are located in Oak.  The FYRE program is a program that puts all first year students together to help them all adapt to their first year hear at BSU.  They have a special roommate process that helps put students together with capable people. The program really works with the ARC to help the freshman to do well in their school work. “We really try to help the freshman in the FYRE program to get good grade to start off their college career,” says Jacob Caron “we try to show them how to study effectively so that they know how to.”

“I have used the ARC multiple times since I have been here,” said Andy Tikkanen a freshman who lives in Oak. “I have gone down there for a couple subjects; they really help you out a lot. They have helped me with studying and test taking.”

Picture 1

The three students all came in at different times but at the ARC they formed a study group and the PAAs just kind of helped them when needed.

Picture 2

The PAAs from left to right are Natasha Kleinsasser and Jacob Caron they are located on 3-B of Oak Hall.