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Student Support System (SSS) – Faculty

The goal of the Student Support System (SSS) is to identify and effectively intervene with students who are exhibiting at-risk behaviors by providing strategies, support, and resources to improve course success and overall retention of students. 

How to submit a referral

Faculty can submit a referral for a student through Faculty Portal. The Faculty Portal provides your current term course roster(s) and referral history in the setting menu. 

SUBMIT A Student Support System (SSS) Referral

Identifying the proper referral

Please use the tables below for more information on Personal Counseling Service and Teaching Learning Center referrals. Each referral type has its own purpose to support a student need. Select accordingly when submitting a referral.

Advising

Type of SSS Referral When to choose this referral Possible Interventions
Course Engagement (Advising)
  • Note: This is not an attendance referral. Your attendance records in Self-Service already generate communications for unexcused absences. See the Automated Attendance Notifications page for more details.
  • A Course Engagement referral would be used when a student is attending class but not engaging or participating in course discussions, has missed multiple assignments, quizzes, or exams, or has shown a significant drop in performance. 
  • We highly encourage you to speak with the student, if possible, to find more detail into why they may not be engaging in class to be able to submit a specific referral for one of the other SSS referral types below. We understand that this may not be possible in an online format and the situation may be that they are unresponsive to emails and assignments, and this referral is in support of that scenario.
  • At the time you submit the referral, an email will be sent from the student's assigned Student Success Advisor, Advising, or Dual Enrollment office as applicable to that student.

Coordinated Care Network

Type of SSS
Referral

 When to choose this referral Possible Interventions
Basic Needs (Coordinated Care Network)
  • A Basic Needs referral would be used in situations where a student needs to be connected to campus or community resources (Food Pantry, Disability Resources, Delta’s Closet, Student Success Workshops, Homeless Shelter)
  • Interventions will be assessed as appropriate by a Licensed Master level Social Worker.
Laptop/Home Internet Access (Coordinated Care Network)
  • A Laptop/Home Internet Access referral would be used when a student is in need of a laptop through the Delta College Laptop Lending Program or resources for low-cost home internet options.
  • Email providing direct links and information for these needs.

eLearning

Type of SSS Referral When to choose this referral Possible Interventions
D2L/Brightspace Support (eLearning)
  • A D2L/Brightspace Support (eLearning) referral would be used when a student expresses a concern about understanding how to navigate their courses in D2L. 
  • Email providing direct support for the students to review and contact information for individualized support.

 Personal Counseling Services

These referrals are not appropriate for crisis situations, BIRB, or Disruptive Student/Conduct. See guidelines (PDF).

Type of SSS Referral
When to choose this referral
Possible Interventions

Mental Health (Counseling)
  • A Mental Health referral would used in situations where a student is possibly struggling with the loss of a loved one, a relationship ending, test anxiety, or coping with a situation.
  • Interventions will be assessed as appropriate by a Licensed Professional Counselor and are confidential as outlined by HIPAA.

Teaching and Learning Center

Type of SSS Referral
When to choose this referral
Possible Interventions

Academic Reading or Writing Support (TLC)
  • At any stage in the writing process for any discipline (and for any genre of writing assignment), from gathering ideas to reviewing final drafts.
  • To improve reading comprehension and understanding of academic reading material
  • Note: Reading or writing consultations are NOT meant to replace classroom instruction nor provide a complete review of expected pre-requisite/foundational knowledge, skills, or abilities. 
  • Intervention based on: 1.) instructor’s concern as described in faculty notes; 2.) student-identified concerns; and 3.) professional expertise of TLC or WRIT Center staff. 
  • Reading-related strategies: Review of specific reading strategies, including prediction skills, application/activation of prior background knowledge, vocabulary development, text interaction, or content analysis. 
  • Writing-related content/strategies: Review of idea- generation techniques, paragraph development/ organization/transitions, and/or appropriate source integration/citation in MLA or APA format.

Content-Specific Course Support (TLC)
  • Student demonstrates effective study habits but may need additional review, application, or practice with a specific course concept or topic. 
  • Note: Tutoring sessions are NOT meant to replace classroom instruction nor provide a complete review of expected pre-requisite/ foundational knowledge, skills, or abilities. 
  • Intervention based on: 1.) instructor’s concern as described in faculty notes; 2.) student-identified content; and 3.) professional expertise of TLC staff.  
  • Individualized explanation of specific course topic or concept, assistance utilizing resources, practice applying course concept(s), and/or opportunities to problem-solve and apply metacognitive strategies. 

Learning, Study, or Testing Strategies (TLC)
  • Student needs to improve their approach to learning and studying at the college level. OR 
  • Student knows course content but has difficulty accessing it during a test. 
  • Intervention based on: 1.) instructor’s concern as described in faculty notes; 2.) student responses to academic coaching intake form; and 3.) professional expertise of TLC staff.  
  • Individual coaching session (or group workshop) on learning and study strategies that improve long-term retention of information. 
  • Individual or group review of effective test preparation tips and/or  test-taking strategies.

Frequently asked questions

Delta College's Student Support System was developed to provide a referral system for faculty who witnessed students struggling or showing improvement in their courses. The system was set up so faculty could easily refer names of students who may benefit from additional assistance outside of the classroom. When possible, referrals should be made early in the semester, as soon as a need is observed or suspected. The referral communicates to staff from Student and Educational Services or the Teaching/Learning Center that a student is in need.  This allows Delta College to communicate and coordinate support resources for students and monitor their progress while guiding students to make good choices. We rely on faculty as the first line of defense to use this system to help us identify students who need additional support.

Faculty can submit a referral for a student through Faculty Portal.

The Faculty Portal provides your course roster(s) and your referral history in the setting menu. 

Faculty Portal: https://delta.elluciancrmadvise.com/FacultyPortal/ 

You can let your students know you are using the Student Support System by including the following section in your syllabus. 

Drafted syllabus language for you to use: 

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, life gets the better of us. Delta College wants to support your academic pursuits and your well-being. We are here to help you succeed. If you are having difficulties keeping up with classwork or dealing with life issues that affect your schooling, please let your professor know. 

There might be resources to help you manage these situations. If your professor becomes aware of an obstacle you are facing, they may reach out to the Student Support System (SSS) to ask that a particular office staff check in with you and share information to support you in addressing your challenges.

Students may experience stressors that can impact both their academic experience and their personal well-being. These may include academic pressure and challenges associated with relationships, mental health, alcohol or other drugs, identities, finances, etc.

If you are experiencing challenges, seeking help is a courageous thing to do for yourself and those who care about you. If the source of your stressors is academic, please contact me so that we can find solutions together. For personal concerns, Delta offers many resources at Inside Delta > Current Students.

Please only submit one referral per type (Coordinated Care Network, Counseling, Teaching/Learning Center, or Kudos) for each student. If you think more than one referral per type is applicable, choose the referral of best fit, and include notes in your referral that include more about what the student needs. 

Each referral ends with the office it's associated. Please choose the one in those categories of best fit for the students you are submitting a referral. 

You are welcome to use different types of referrals for students. For example, if the student should be referred to both the TLC and Counseling, you may submit a referral for both types. We ask that you simply don't choose more than one referral per office type.

An email is sent to the student upon the creation of every referral you submit. A staff member from that office may also reach out to the student via phone. 

Once the referral is received in the system, the student will receive an email notifying them of the referral and the purpose of the outreach. The email will encourage the student to reach out for assistance and give contact information for the Coordinated Care Network,  Personal Counseling Services, or the Teaching Learning Center  – based on the nature of the referral.

Depending on the nature of the referral, the student will either be contacted by the Student Care Coordinator in the Coordinated Care Network office for Basic Needs, the Personal Counseling Services office for mental health support, or Teaching Learning Center for tutoring, writing, or studying strategies support.

Emails and phone calls will be made within 48 business hours to the student, giving the student a 14 day period to respond.

Interventions will be determined on a case by case basis. Be sure to include specific notes in your referral to help the staff have a conversation with your student. 

SSS referrals are on a CRM Advise student record, different than the student record generated for transcripts or transfer. Staff with these privileges are limited to those who have an educational need for such information as contained within CRM Advise. Therefore, our system is FERPA-compliant.

Student and Educational Services and Teaching and Learning Center staff will reach out to  the student depending on the nature of the referral. You do not need to do anything once you have submitted the SSS referral. You can view the status of your referral (Open, Closed, Complete) in the Faculty  Portal. 

Within Faculty Portal, you can view your referral history in the upper-right menu options. Select the course for which referrals you would like to see. The status of the referral, in the far right column, will be one of three options: open, closed, or canceled. 

    • Open - the referral has been submitted to the owner of that referral to take action. We are in the process of reaching out to the student to provide services through a two-way conversation or to schedule an appointment. 
    • Closed - the student and staff member have made a two-way connection via a phone conversation or the student attended a scheduled appointment. If an appointment was scheduled, the referral is 'closed' only if the student attended the appointment.
    • Canceled - after 14 days, if the staff member was not able to make connection with the student, the referral is canceled. 

The process behind the Student Support System is semi-automated, but there are certain steps that require student response in order to progress further. It is helpful when students know that their faculty are submitting a referral on their behalf so that they can be on the lookout for someone to reach out to them. On your end, it may seem like nothing happened, but there will be several behind-the-scenes attempts at communicating with a student before a referral is closed out.