“I had a rough time during my first 2 years at JMU… Before Fall 2022, my study habits consisted of reading the same information over and over again in hopes that I would memorize it and do well on my exams...It wasn't until I began using my resources and meeting with the Learning Success Strategies team that I realized that I was looking at the issue from a warped perspective. I decided in the Fall of 2022 to slow down, lean on my support groups, and fix the habits in my life that were keeping me from succeeding. I learned new study habits such as teaching the class material to friends to really understand the information prior to exams and creating a relationship with my professors to make asking questions less daunting. Within weeks I was already seeing improvements in my grades, my self-esteem began to rise, and I was feeling much more confident in my abilities as a student… My whole outlook changed and I went from a student in 2020-2021 who consistently received C's, to a student who was thriving in my work and school environments. I ended up earning all A's in Fall 2023, including in a statistics class that I had failed twice prior to passing it with an A. I have changed a lot as a person and I am proud of how far I've come.”

-Kristina Tojsl ‘24