Finals week at Neumann University brings long nights, high stress, and pressure to perform. But inside the Learning Commons, every department works together to make sure students don’t face the week alone. They offer services like tutoring, accommodations, crafts, and help with final exam planning, providing students with both academic and emotional support when students need it most.
The Learning Commons brings together multiple departments like the Accessibility Services Center, the Office of TRIO/Student Support Services, the Writing Center, the Office of First-Year & Second-Year Experience, SUCCESS Coaching and Tutoring, and the Library. Each plays a part in student success during finals week. This piece will look at the Library, the Accessibility Services Center, and the TRIO/SSS Program, services that are used the most during finals. Their combined work supports students both academically and emotionally as they deal with the stress of final exams.
The library serves as the starting point for much of this support. Tiffany McGregor, the Library Director, was happy to share with me the library’s end-of-semester offerings. These include coloring sheets, brain teasers, sand and snowman crafts, jigsaw puzzles, and a Mindfulness Corner where students can “take little breaks to reduce stress.”
The library worked with the Student Support Center and SGA to offer tutoring for four nights, December 1–4.
The Writing Center led writing workshops, and the School of Business sponsored a study break on December 9. On December 8, they held an Exam Kick-Off event with snacks, writing tools, and librarians on hand to aid with last-minute research. McGregor described an “endless supply of treats, office supplies, and moral support through exam week,” along with extended Sunday hours to give students more flexibility.
The library staff is very important in helping students during finals week by answering questions right away. Deborah D. Falciani, a Catalog and Library Assistant, gladly walks students through how to check library hours, find updates about finals, and reserve study rooms. Instead of leaving students to figure things out on their own, she and other library staff point out exactly where things are on the library website and make sure you leave with no questions. Her approach shows just how available the library is during finals. Students don’t have to struggle to know where to go; they can just ask, and someone will help them. The library offers support to the entire campus, but the Accessibility Services Center is essential for students with disabilities, mainly during finals week. Dr. Jennifer Labowitz, who directs Accessibility Services, explains how exam accommodations work.
“So let’s say a student has ADHD. And they have difficulty focusing during exams, so they need extra time,” she said. “When it comes finals, it’s the same thing. It’s just usually finals are longer, so they get even more time.”
Labowitz said the accessibility center sees a surge in students during finals. “At around 10, 10:15, I had 15 different students testing at the same time,” she said. To manage this, the staff makes use of several rooms. Labowitz stressed that even when all the testing rooms are occupied, they make sure every student is taken care of. “If our rooms are full, that’s fine. We still accommodate them in a different space.”
The TRIO/SSS program aids qualified students and modifies its support during final exams. Oreanthy Hionis, the TRIO/SSS Program Director, clarified that TRIO differs from other tutoring options. With three days of tutoring during finals week either by dropping in or MS Teams. “So, you know, if you want to pop in for a question, you can do that. If you need a whole hour of like ‘quiz me’ and everything else, you can do that too.”
Another thing that TRIO students also get access to is a finals visual planner to map out what grades they need and how each exam affects their overall performance. “We work on that to the extent that the students want,” Hionis said, describing efforts to help students feel “in control of what’s happening for their finals.”
In addition to tutoring, TRIO provides wellness-based support. On the 2nd, they hosted a Crafternoon Crochet event, giving students a chance to decompress through hands-on activities that help calm the brain and improve focus. TRIO uses activities like these to help students reset before studying, combining stress relief with preparation for the cognitive load of their finals. “Helps students take it down, do something with your brain that not only will calm you but is helpful for studying and the retention of information.”
For students who use TRIO, the impact is immediate. Markia Johnson, a sophomore who has used TRIO tutoring for her biology final, said, “I really ended up benefiting from the trio tutoring because I feel better when I go over something as close to the test as possible, and with trio I could get tutored literally right before my final.”
The library, Accessibility Services, and TRIO work in concert to support students’ academic, emotional, and practical needs. The Learning Commons gives students the resources they need to confidently face finals, be it a quiet place to study, testing accommodations or help with research.
