NEW ORLEANS – On Friday, March 24, Loyola University New Orleans launched the Loyola First Year Ignition Program, an innovative new program that provides free textbooks to the first 400 admitted students to engage in a college readiness conversation with a member of Loyola’s student success corps.
An essential rule of succeeding in class is to complete all the assigned readings. Entering class on day one with your textbooks in hand sets a student on the path to becoming an engaged learner, school reps said.
“At Loyola University New Orleans, we believe that a prepared student is a successful student, and with the right tools, they can accomplish anything,” said Laura Kurzu, vice president of marketing and communications. “We are making this investment in Freshman students so that they can have a good start to their college experience, and not have to worry about the added costs of necessary items like textbooks, which often times come out of the family pocketbook.”
The Loyola First Year Ignition Program is a special initiative designed to promote a successful first-year experience for Loyola students by making sure they are prepared for college and have the books they need to get the most out of their classes. The program, created in partnership by Loyola New Orleans and Follett Educational Services, focuses on three components: assessing student preparedness, encouraging student success, and paying it forward.
• How does it work?
All admitted students are invited to go to www.loyno.edu/FreeBooks to register for a college preparedness discussion. Once the conversation is completed, and a deposit has been received by May 1, the student will be enrolled to receive free textbooks for the freshman fall and spring semesters. The textbooks will be automatically ordered so that they can be loaned to the student when they register for classes. The Loyola First Year Ignition program students will pick up their loaned books on a specially designated book day for program participants. All they need to do is return the loaned books at the end of the semester to the bookstore so that they can be re-used by other students.
• Who is eligible?
The program is limited to the first 400 admitted students who register for and participate in an online discussion at www.loyno.edu/FreeBooks, and submit a deposit by May 1. Once the conversation is complete, and the deposit is received, they will be enrolled in the program to receive free textbooks for their fall and spring semesters. The program is only limited to 400 students at this time, but all students who register will be retained on a standby list in the event that the program is expanded at a later date.
• Why is Loyola doing this?
Data shows that that students who are well prepared, do better. And a positive experience freshman year prepares them for the entire college experience. Loyola’s goal with this project is to engage prospective students, to have a meaningful conversation with them about college readiness, and to make sure they have the tools they need to succeed.
“When we say at Loyola University New Orleans that you’re part of our family, we mean it,” said University President the Rev. Kevin Wm. Wildes, S.J., Ph.D. “We’re invested in you. In your success. As we say at Loyola, ‘the Pack has your back.’ And it starts here.”
