Michelle Tsigaridas’ parents immigrated to the United States and had to start their lives from scratch in a new country. Now a sophomore at Eleanor Roosevelt College, Michelle is part of the first generation of her family to attend a university, carrying all the economic burdens and social unfamiliarity associated with the role. She realized she needed some help with her new educational venture.

When Andrew de La Rosa arrived as a freshman at Earl Warren College, he was not sure how to get involved with student activities or services outside of academics. He also faced a financial burden in trying to pay for all his textbooks. He was searching for a way to transition more easily into college life.

Both Tsigaridas and de La Rosa benefited from the UCSD Academic Success Program, a student-run retention program designed to help students complete their education at the university. A.S.P. is unique in that it provides financial, academic and social support networks that make the campus just a little more welcoming for the self-searching freshman, the stressed-out upperclassman or the adjusting transfer student.

“The main purpose and goal of A.S.P. is to support students in their studies on this campus by promoting student retention and providing them help in social, financial, as well as academic matters,” said Amara Zafar, A.S.P. special projects director. “Our program’s aim is to find out the students that need us the most and help them achieve better education and better life at this university.”

A.S.P. was pioneered by a group of students in the fall of 1997, and the program was the first of its kind at UCSD. It mainly began as a system to allow financially burdened students to borrow textbooks. Although it gathered initial support, a lack of attention and funding almost made the program fail. A.S.P. leaders managed to pass a referendum on the 2001 A.S. ballot that secured sufficient funding for the program. A.S.P. is now an Associated Students service, receiving $1 per student per quarter for its activities. Running on an underlying philosophy that those who are admitted into UCSD should graduate from the university, A.S.P. focuses on working with students in an effort to make them stay at the school.

“If there is a student that ends up dropping out, we feel directly responsible for them,” said Abby Hsu, a sophomore at Revelle College who interns at A.S.P.

A.S.P. has come a long way from its inception as simply a book-lending program. It now comprises five major programs — book-lending, mentoring, academic assistance, exam archives and special projects — all designed to provide support to students.

However, A.S.P.’s most developed and most prominent service is still the book-lending program, in which students apply for free textbooks to help defray some of their educational costs. According to Hsu, about 250 to 300 students apply each quarter for free books. Applicants are evaluated according to financial and personal circumstances, and books are distributed according to each student’s needs and the limits of the program’s budget.

“A.S.P. gives me the opportunity to take the classes I enjoy, without the burden of purchasing all the books when I really don’t need to keep them after,” said Linda Tran, a John Muir College sophomore.

Another well-developed A.S.P. service is the mentoring program, which aims at helping freshmen, sophomores and transfer students adjust to their new environment at UCSD. A.S.P. mentors work individually with students and also organize social events, providing a tight system of friendship and support. In addition, A.S.P. gives funding to other student organizations, such as Kaibigang Pilipino, Asian and Pacific-Islander Student Alliance, Black Student Union and Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, which all have their own organized mentoring program.

“To keep students here on campus, you have to develop some sort of attachment, some sort of belonging,” said Terry Le, A.S.P. executive director. “Here at college, the university tries to give you that development academically, but there’s no personal development … and through the mentoring program, I think there’s a lot of potential in students helping their fellow peers to find their way, to find themselves.”

Many students who receive mentoring have had positive experiences with the program.

“Having a mentor really facilitated my transition as an incoming college freshman,” said Juliana Hung, a Revelle freshman. “It’s great to be able to have someone that I can go talk to and bring up any problems or questions I have about academics … or even my own personal life. It’s so great to know that my mentor is always there for me.”

Similar to the mentoring program, A.S.P. also has an Academic Assistance Program, which helps to set up tutoring and study groups among students with similar classes. In the future, A.S.P. hopes to strengthen this program by collaborating with the campus Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services.

A.S.P.’s exam archives program allows students to access old tests and study guides donated by other students. A.S.P. is currently working on a voucher program with A.S. Lecture Notes, through which needy students will be able to receive discounted or even free lecture notes. A.S.P. also organizes special projects from time to time, including college workshops, to help retention efforts on campus.

Many students who use these services have found them to be beneficial in their academic and social lives.

“A.S.P. has helped me financially and has had a huge positive effect on the way I look at and adjust to UCSD,” said Vy Mai, an ERC freshman. “It’s programs like A.S.P. that make me look at UCSD as an institution that really makes an effort to help out students that may lack resources.”

Others have emphasized the role A.S.P. has played in their transition into college life.

“A.S.P. helped me to have a smooth transition into UCSD because they provided that extra help to get me started in my college career, and I am truly thankful to their staff for their assistance,” de La Rosa said.

Currently, the staff of A.S.P. consists of seven directors and seven interns — a group of motivated students determined to reach out to others in need of their services.

“The concept of helping a student when you are a student yourself made me realize that this college and its community is like my family,” Zafar said.

“If we can be the motivating factor, the main reason why [students] come here … that’s something I envision A.S.P. becoming,” Hsu said.