While peer mentoring programs have become all the rage in higher education, not many peer mentoring programs focus on second-year students. At our institution, the second-year peer mentors (Leads) serve as personal friends, guides, and coaches to each second-year student. Each returning student (or incoming transfer student) is assigned a Lead the summer before they return or start at SUU (usually in April or May). These peer mentors reach out to each student regularly throughout the summer to ensure all questions are answered, the students are registered for classes, and they have completed their second-year checklist.

Nii Abrahams from Butler University joins co-hosts Jared Tippets and Eric Kirby to share his deep knowledge, wisdom, and insights on how campuses can increase their retention and student success efforts!

Since Fall 2022, Nii Abrahams has served as the inaugural Director of the First Year Experience at Butler University in Indianapolis, where he partners across the 4 campus divisions to ensure all areas work cohesively to create a culture of well-being with intentional systems that cultivate belonging and connectedness for all first-year students on campus. He is extremely passionate about helping college students and young professionals discover, develop, and deploy their gifts and passions to make an impact in their chosen communities. He is frequently invited speaker on leadership, belonging, and ministry.

Before his start at Butler University, Nii was the inaugural Director of Orientation and First Year Experience at Anderson University in Indiana and has held other roles in higher education including Assistant Director of Admissions, and Communication adjunct faculty at Ivy Tech Community College, Southern New Hampshire University online, and Missouri State University. In his life prior to his work in higher education, he has developed a breadth of experience in the marketing world as a communication and content strategist for a national nonprofit and as a digital marketing manager for an east coast branding agency. In addition to his job at Butler, Nii also serves as a volunteer staff pastor at a local church in north Indianapolis, which he helped start in 2016. He holds a Bachelors in Communication with an emphasis in Ethical Leadership and a Master’s in Communication, both from Missouri State University. In his downtime, you can find him spending time with his wife and daughter, playing Monopoly Deal, and searching for the best donut shops in Indianapolis.

Completing a FAFSA has many financial benefits. So, our Financial Wellness Office created regular and ongoing ‘FAFSA Nights’. During our FAFSA Nights, our Financial Wellness Office reserves a computer lab on campus for the evening to help students apply for FAFSA and answer all questions regarding what FAFSA is and why they should apply. The student turnout to these events is not huge, but every student helped is another student who hopefully doesn’t leave our campus due to financial reasons.