Success center proposal brings important issues to mind

By Matt Griesmyer

Students’ success is directly proportional to the support a college or university offers to its students.  
Recently, a budget proposal was presented that included a proposal for a Student Success Center. This center would serve as a hub that provides services for students so we can readily find help as we progress through college careers and beyond.
While our humble college has numerous services and offices to help students succeed, there is no centralized office to direct students when in need.  
If a student needs help writing, go to the Writing Center.  If a student needs help practicing for the GSP test, talk to one of the communication professors.  If a student needs help with finding a book, ask a librarian.  What if you just plain need help though?  
Is there a genuine need for a center?  I do not mean just a few scattered offices, but a genuine, honest-to-goodness office where the staff specializes in giving help to all students are able to direct efforts to help students.  
You might as well ask if there is a need for a telephone book, or Google, or even a directory.  
A Student Success Center that not only is dedicated to the success of its students, but also thrives-nay-survives on the success of the students would be a beneficial investment for the college.
What services would the center provide?  
Other schools across the country have similar programs.  One common goal of most centers is to help students realize and achieve their academic goals while maximizing their potential.
This would be an absolute boon for the students and faculty at University of Houston-Clear Lake.  Students who have problems with a required class, for example Advanced Writing, can be sent to three places to start with:  the teacher, the library and the Writing Center.  From there, where can they go?  If there are no solutions at any of those places, what is the student left to do?  
The help that will be offered at a Student Success Center will not only assist current students, but also those transitioning into our campus from other backgrounds.  Potential incoming freshmen could receive classes and help in managing their time, balancing school life and other difficult tasks that we, as upperclassmen, overlook, but are vital to succeed in transitioning from high school to college life.
At this point having a Student Success Center would be where students could turn, but for now there is no place for students to go.  
Investing in the center and setting aside precious funds so help for students can always be given would be a sound investment to make now for the long run.
When identifying the potential markup of tuition and other fees to counterbalance the funding for the center, students and other involved parties would have to identify and weigh the options, but the real question that needs to be addressed is simple.
Can we afford not to?