On the job talks with Early Assessment Program Office

The Bulletin spoke with Joy Salvetti, director of the Early Assessment Program.

What do people think you do?
I’m not sure. The Early Assessment Program is one of three programs I administer. In speaking with people, I think they believe it’s just another assessment we give to high school students during their junior year. Basically, they think it’s just one more test.

What do you really do?
The Early Assessment Program is a mechanism that truly addresses remediation in college. Some high school students accepted into college may look good on paper, but when they hit our doorstep we find they're not ready to do the work. EAP determines high school juniors’ college readiness in English and Mathematics, and it allows students to do whatever work they need to do to become better prepared during their senior year. EAP has blossomed into a tool that really addresses the dichotomy between college eligibility and college readiness. We’re fortunate that we have a faculty member doing a research project on the benefits of the program and already her results provide strong evidence that EAP works to reduce remediation.

Describe your office?
We’re in Sacramento Hall housed under Academic Affairs. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Joseph Sheley is my direct administrator. My one staff person, Charlotte Van Wagner, is phenomenal. We are more a team than anything, and the fact we are running three programs speaks volumes to that. I do have three faculty who work directly with EAP, and they’re instrumental in growing the program: Marcy Merrill, Adele Arrellano and Tina Jordan.

What surprises people?
The fact that we are administering not only the Early Assessment Program, but two other programs as well: The Reading Institute for Academic Preparation and The Guardian Scholars Program.

What is your biggest challenge?
Probably the budget . My biggest challenge is showing the importance of each of the programs so that funds aren’t cut. As you well know, this is an annual occurrence. You never feel like you can ride on the success of a program. You always have to demonstrate its merit.

What are you asked most?
"What is EAP?: It’s often confused with Employees Assistance Program, another program on campus. So I'm careful with my acronyms. I also find myself having to explain that The Early Assessment Program is more than just a test. As we’ve discussed, it’s so much more than that.