Students meet with Financial Aid advisors at One-Stop Shop
Photo Submitted by Nicole Williams
One-Stop Shop ended with a positive outlook for the beginning of the school year at Florida A&M.
One-Stop Shop, an event created to be a hub for students’ back to school needs, concluded Thursday with many who worked at the event throughout the week happy at the turnout. The event took place at the Lawson Center, where students met with several different departments in one central location.
“I was able to come in and met with advisors within 15 minutes of walking in the door,” Nick Jonas, a business administration major, said. “It was great to be able to meet with my advisor and even meet with financial aid to get some really important information.”
“One-Stop Shop is a hub where students can not only receive help but learn about different departments and who they can connect with whenever they may have a problem,” Ruth Fennell, a student volunteer for One-Stop Shop, explained. She worked throughout the week to connect students to Financial Aid, Academic Advising, Health Services, Parking Services and many more.
“I think the great thing about this year is that a lot of students were able to complete what they needed ahead of time so there was not as much of a rush of students today. Which is really great to see,” she added.
Fennell believed the increased use of social media has made it easier to connect with the students. “Social media really helped to spread awareness to students, so it was a lot easier to connect with students because more and more of our students are on social media,” she said. “Flyers and posters are not working anymore. Emails are helpful sometimes, but social media has definitely been a huge help.”
John Tornes, a specialist with Transfer Student Services, said FAMU continues to make improvements with this event.
“I loved this event for the opportunity to see what changes can be made and how we can better serve the students, he said. “Overall, I’ve seen tremendous progress over the years, with this being my seventh year working One-Stop Shop. I believe that we have the right type of leadership in place that are willing to roll up their sleeves and truly help the students.”
Its clear that One-Stop Shop has come a long way, but there are many more strides that can be made. Although the event has ended for this semester, students are excited to see what new improvements will be made to the process to ensure students a quick and hassle-free process.
One Stop Shop ran for four days starting Monday and will be back at the beginning of the new year.