The following set of six (6) student profiles are composites based upon many of the students that I have taught over the years. Any resemblance to a particular person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The purpose here is to have a group of students, making use of my 9-Step Life Management Program described under "Making Choices: The Bottom Line of Time Management," study these profiles in an attempt to understand and then correct the problems of contemporary life that plague students to the point of failing out of school and, equally as bad, in life. The students, working in what I prefer to call "Quality Circles," are expected to do field research on the campus to determine the type of resources available so as to provide a support network of services that can bail these inidivudals out of trouble. In doing so, they must develop not one, but two 9-Step Profiles. The first describes the actual problem that the student is faced with. The second, "corrected" version, includes those preventive measures that the Quality Circle has developed based upon the problems and solutions of the group. This has proven to be a highly enlightening, exciting academic exercise for those involved. I caution each Quality Circle to concentrate on the set of problems presented by its own assigned "Character." Each group is free to develop the presentation in its own format, with an emphasis on developing charts, graphs, finding brochures and other materials to accentuate the presentation before the class itself. Many groups have shown the inventiveness and motivation to produce and present their own videotapes simulations or movies of these characters, acting out the roles themselves and incorporating solutions within those videos. That same sort of student motivation and inventiveness is enouraged here, but each group is cautioned to remember that time is not on your side and you are expected to be ready on the assigned presentation regardless. No one has permission to use these character sketches without first ecuring the express written permission of the author who may be contacted at California State University, Northridge.

General
Rachel Roberts is a 17-year-old freshman who graduated from San Fernando High School. She is the oldest of three siblings, all girls, raised by her single parent mother Trina Roberts. Rochelle's father was killed in an automobile accident when she was a tenth grader. Her mother has just recently been hired by the Southern California Gas Company following several months of working for temporary employment services. This followed a period in which the family had to make ends meet on the father's life insurance benefits and AFDC. The family still lives in the same 2-bedroom house in the city of Pacoima that they had when the father was alive, a house they were able to payoff in full upon his death with the life insurance policy. Rachel graduated from San Fernando HS with a 2.34 cumulative gpa. She lives at home and commutes to campus on the bus from San Fernando.

Academic Profile:
Rachel scored 142 on the English Placement Test (EPT) which automatically qualified her for 098 English. She scored 310 on the Verbal portion of the SAT and 340 on the Math portion. This young lady took PAS 098 during the fall semester, earning a "CR" in the course which has qualified her for PAS 155. Her Pre-Semester scores in PAS 155 indicated a 7 on the Essay Exam, the 11th percentile on Logical Relationships and a 18th percentile on the Usage Test.

She entered CSUN through the EOP Program as an undeclared major. Rachel didn't declare a major because she wasn't sure -- and still isn't -- that college is meant for her. For the Fall Semester, she earned an unimpressive 2.1 overall gpa. This has inspired Rachel to put together the following Spring schedule: PAS 155, Biology 100, Marketing 100, Philosophy 100, Theater Arts 111 and Math 094. Rachel put together her own course schedule. Though she is an EOP student, she has no academic advisor.

Personal/Work Status:
Rachel receives a Pell grant but that is the extent of her financial aid. It turns out that the Financial Aid office looked at the fact that with Trina Roberts working and the family "owning" a home with only two daughters remaining in the house, that the Roberts family made too much money (i.e., equity in the house) to qualify for more aid. Because of this decision, Rachel has to live at home. Overlooked is the fact that the home was badly damaged by the Northridge Earthquake and help has been slow in coming forth. She has also just been offered a job working at Builder's Home Emporium in San Fernando (She worked there for the summer following high school graduation to earn money for school and help out at home) for 40 hours per week including full eight-hour shifts on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Other:
Rachel has been approved for American Express, Mastercard and Visa. Furthermore, Rachel is dyslexic but received no support services in high school and isn't aware of CSUN's services.

General:
Anthony Waters is an 18-year-old freshman who graduated from San Diego Lincoln High School. He is the second of four siblings with an older brother, Walter, who entered the U.S. Army upon graduation one year earlier. Anthony has a younger brother and sister. The younger brother is an eleventh grader at Lincoln High while the sister is a ninth grader. He lives with both parents. His father has been recently laid off as a worker for IBM, part of that giant company's "downsizing" policy. His mother has just started a job as a clerical assistant at the local community college in order to generate family income while the father looks for work. Anthony graduated with a 2.14 gpa from Lincoln. With his dreadlocks and heavy involvement with rapping, Anthony might be described as the rebel in his family.

Academic Profile:
Anthony scored 140 on the English Placement Test (EPT) which qualified him into the 097 ("Basic Writing Skills") course. He scored 300 on the SAT Verbal section and 350 on the SAT Math. He was able to earn "CR" during the Fall in the 097 course and has now progressed to 098. His Pre-Semester scores in 098 were 8 on the Essay Exam, 45th percentile on Sentence Structure and 36th percentile on the Vocabulary. Anthony entered CSUN through EOP as a Music major (i.e., he plays piano and sings). His course schedule includes PAS 098, Psychology 150, Political Science 155, PAS 271 and Music 100. He put together his own schedule.

For the Fall semester, Anthony received a 2.28 gpa with a "C" in PAS 2790, a "C" in PAS 110, a "CR" in PAS 097, another "CR" in Math 094a, and a "B" in Kinesiology.

Personal/Work Status:
Anthony receives a Pell grant and has qualified for Work-Study. He lives at the University Park Apartments with two roommates, one of whom is a former classmate from SD Lincoln. Their dormitory room was "green tagged" following the Northridge Earthquake although there was some damage to the interior of the apartment. He has found a job working off-campus at Tower Records in Panorama City for 32 hours per week. With his roommate from Lincoln HS and two other students he has met at CSUN, Anthony also "rehearses" 12 hours a week as part of an aspiring rap group for which he writes the songs.

Other:
During the hectic first week back at CSUN, Anthony applied for and received via "instant credit" the Citibank Visa and American Express cards. He used his Pell grant to make a down payment on a 1990 Toyota Tercel for which he now makes monthly payments of $180. He has used his Visa card to purchase the books for his classes.

General:
Denise Dyers is an 19-year old student entering her fourth semester at CSUN. She is on academic probation. Following an unimpressive 1st year where she compiled a 2.1 gpa, her Fall semester was a disaster as she received a 1.0. She received a "Fail" in Geology 100 and a "D" in Theater Arts 111. She received "CR" in 097 after taking the English Placement Test that Fall semester and qualifying for 097 with a score of 129 -- a course she took in the spring. She earned a "CR" during the Fall of 1994 in PAS 098.. After receiving "NC" in Math 094A that Fall semester of the first year at CSUN, she refused to repeat the course.

Denise is the oldest of two granddaughters raised by her maternal grandmother Myra Johnson. Denise never knew who her father was and her mother, a recovering crack cocaine abuser, is a long-term resident at the House of Uhuru Substance Abuse Treatment Program in Southcentral Los Angeles. Denise graduated from George Washington Preparatory High School in South Los Angeles with a 1.95 gpa. A Health Sciences major, few know that part of the reason for Denise's academic problems that spring at CSUN resulted from having to first qualify for General Relief and then using her MediCal card to have an abortion. This caused her to miss one full month of classes at CSUN. A very shy girl, she now lives at her grandmother's home on 98th and Hooper, riding the RTD to school each day.

Academic Profile:
Denise is an EOP student. The courses she has enrolled in include PAS 155, PAS 100, Geology 100, History 150 and Theater Arts 111. She has yet to complete any GE courses in Social Sciences or meet her Title V requirement. On her Pre-Semester Essay, she received a score of 6. On the Logical Relationships, she scored at the 10th percentile and on the Usage she tested at the 14th percentile. The only contact she has had with the EOP Office has been with a Peer Counselor at the end of her first semester. She did not respond to the letter informing her that she was on academic probation, in part because of transportation problems.

Personal/Work Status:
Denise works 36 hours a week at Boys Market in South Los Angeles as a cashier. Because of her academic status, her financial aid has been wiped out and Denise made no efforts at trying to find out what can be done. Since no one informed Denise of the "Credit Card Trap," this young lady acquired seven credit cards her freshman year including Visa, Mastercard, Mastercharge, Discovery, American Express, Nordstrom's and J.C. Penney. She has accumulated $2,400 in credit card charges. She is severely depressed at lack of finances and no social life with constant harassment from creditors.

What makes Denise's problem even more severe is the neglectful way she has handled finances, especially where paying the rent is concerned. Now three months behind, she has received a "Pay or Quit" notice that, combined with a $600 phone bill, has Denise ready to drop out.

General:
Dontae McIntyre is an 18-year-old graduate of Reseda High School in the San Fernando Valley. He was active in sports at Reseda, participating in track and field as a quarter-miler who placed second in the California State High School Championships during his senior year. This earned Dontae a partial grant from the CSUN track team. He also played center-forward in basketball for the Regents and was named All-League although only 6'3" tall. An only child, Dontae lives with his mother in the Van Nuys Apartments. His mother works as a medical biller in Sherman Oaks. Academically, he was not nearly so impressive -- retaining eligibility during the school year with courses taken during summer school. He finished Reseda with a 2.3 gpa and is attending CSUN as a Prop 48 casualty (i.e., this cost him a full scholarship offer from the University of Arkansas).

Academic Profile:
Dontae scored a total of 680 on the SAT even though he took it twice: he scored 300 on the Verbal and 380 on the Math portions of the test. He attended Summer Bridge just prior to enrolling full-time at CSUN, and during that summer scored 136 on the English Placement Test (EPT) which would have placed him in 097. Because of the "CR" received in Summer Bridge (i.e., he received a "C" in PAS 100), he enrolled in 098 for the semester and received a "CR" in the course. On the Pre-Semester tests for PAS 155, Dontae scored a "6" on the Essay Exam, an 18th percentile on Logical Relationships and 21st percentile on the Usage Diagnostic Tests. He has poor reading skills and bad study habits. He starts the spring with a 2.1 gpa.

Dontae's course schedule includes PAS 155, Biology 100, Theater Arts 111, Psychology 155 and Geography 100. Although counseled about courses during Bridge, this young man insisted on completing his course schedule by himself and did so.

Personal/Work Status:
Dontae receives a Pell grant through EOP and has qualified for $2100 in College Work-Study. He lives on-campus in the University Park Apartments with three roommates, two of whom he met during Summer Bridge and the third a friend from Reseda High. He has found a job working 28 hours a week for UPS as a driver and is still looking for work at CSUN.

Other:
Dontae remains in touch with his girlfriend, now a beautician in Panorama City whom he tries to see every weekend. They have talked off and on of getting married, with her doing most of the talking. Dontae has acquired two credit cards -- Visa and Mastercard -- which he has used so far on gifts and dinner for his girlfriend with the charges coming to $500. Dontae drives to work in a car he purchased after his eleventh grade year from money saved working that summer.

General:
Diane Spencer is an 18-year old freshman at CSUN who graduated from Culver City High School with a 2.54 gpa. She is the oldest of three girls raised by her mother, Ruth, who works as a loan processor for a Los Angeles-based real estate mortgage company. Diane is the first in her family to attend a four-year college, her mother having graduated from Los Angeles City College with an A.A. in Business. Diane's parents divorced when she was in the ninth grade and her father now lives in Houston, Texas where he has remarried. Her father provides no child support to the family. Active and outgoing, Diane has worked since the 11th grade. The summer before entering CSUN, she turned down the chance to attend the Summer Bridge Program in order to work full-time at the May Company. That year, she attended Santa Monica CC while continuing to work. She used the money saved to make a down payment on a 1993 Toyota Corolla.

Academic Profile:
Diane scored 830 on the SAT: 400 on the Verbal and 430 on the Math portions of the test. She scored 151 on the English Placement Test (EPT) which qualified her for the 155 course. On her Pre-Semester scores, Diane scored a "9" on the Essay Examination, 56th percentile on Logical Relationships and 45th percentile on Usage. After spending the first year at SMCC as an "Undecided" major, this young lady has decided to be an RTVB major, with hopes of becoming a Broadcast Journalist. Diane is transferring into CSUN with a 2.5 cumulative gpa.

Although she spoke with Transfer Services, Diane's course schedule was put together without academic advisement from either the RTVB Department or the EOP Program which she came through. She has enrolled in PAS 155, RTVF 100, Marketing 100, Math 095, Psychology 155 and Astronomy 152. She has classes all five days of the week and says to anyone who'll listen that she "needs to be occupied" all the time.

Personal/Work Status:
Diane receives a Pell grant as a result of her EOP status. She also qualified for $1200 in Work-Study. That is the extent of her financial aid. She has taken a job in the Sherman Oaks Galleria working 36 hours a week for a clothing store which includes working Mondays-Thursdays and 16 hours every weekend. Diane lives on-campus in the University Park Apartments with three roommates, none of whom she knew prior to coming to Northridge. Between working and school, she spends considerable time on the phone with her mother as this is Diane's first time away from home. She is also concerned about her 17-year-old sister Jasmine, now a senior at Culver City HS who has taken up with a bad crowd. During the summer, Jasmine runaway from home on two separate occasions, not returning until two days had passed.

Other:
Diane has received a Visa card and has sent off applications for three other cards including American Express and Mastercard. She has started becoming neglectful of her diet, and is unaware of the University's Counseling Services.

General
Maceo Roberts is a 19-year-old entering freshman at CSUN with an unusual background. He dropped out of Fremont High School in South Los Angeles after his tenth grade year during to frequent encounters with the police caused by gang involvement. Maceo spent two years in McLaren Hall where he successfully completed the G.E.D. He also attracted the attention of Jake Thomas, a Juvenile Hall counselor who saw potential in this young man despite his problems. It is because of Thomas that Maceo has been able to avoid further troubles with the police. For the past year, he lived with Thomas while working with Lumber City. During that time, Maceo made up his mind that he would go to college after going to the funerals of four childhood friends killed as a result of streetgang violence. Maceo has three bothers and sisters, and all have different fathers. Maceo's father was stabbed to death in South Los Angeles, the victim of a robbery attempt. His mother receives AFDC and works whenever she can doing hair for friends and other odd jobs. The neighborhood he grew up in on 79th and Hoover Streets is gang-infested. He rarely goes there now, even to visit his mother who dropped out of high school in the eleventh grade to give birth to Maceo.

Academic Profile:
Maceo scored 290 on the Verbal portion of the SAT and 330 on the Math. He scored 139 on the English Placement Test (EPT) which he took while attending the Summer Bridge Program. While this score would normally have placed Maceo in 097 English, he is in 155 as a result of having earned "CR" in 097 during the Bridge Program and following up with a "CR" in CHS 098 for the Fall semester. On the Pre-Semester Tests in 098, this young man scored "5" on the Essay Exam, 21st percentile on Sentence Structure and 18th percentile on Vocabulary.

Maceo's class schedule for the semester includes PAS 055, Math 094B, PAS 271, PAS 161 and Biology 100. He has declared Business Accounting as his major, but as yet is not a member of the Minority Business Program (nor is he aware of what it is or the services provided for the students who are members).

Personal/Work Status:
Maceo receives a Pell grant from EOP. Because he was late in filing for financial aid, all other grant monies were gone by the time his application was reviewed -- even though he qualified for maximum assistance. He has been approved for $2400 in College Work-Study, but has not found any placement on campus. He has applied for a student loan. Through his friend Jake Thomas, Maceo was able to be transferred to Lumber City in the San Fernando Valley where he now plans to work 36 hours a week to meet expenses. He lives in the University Park Apartments with two roommates, both of whom are sophomores.

Other:
Because of Jake Thomas' role model, Maceo has just recently stopped selling drugs.

General
Shemeika Jackson is a 17-year-old freshman who graduated from Polytechnic High School. She is the oldest of three siblings, all girls, raised by her single parent mother Trina Jackson. ShemeikaUs father was killed in an automobile accident when she was a tenth grader. Her mother has just recently been hired by the Southern California Gas Company following several months of working for temporary employment services. This followed a period in which the family had to make ends meet on the father's life insurance benefits and AFDC. The family lives in the same 2-bedroom house in the city of Pacoima that they had when the father was alive, a house they were able to payoff in full upon his death with the life insurance policy. Shemeika graduated from Poly HS in Sun Valley with a 2.14 cumulative gpa. She lives at home and commutes to campus on the bus from Pacoima.

Academic Profile
Shemeika scored 127 on the English Placement Test (EPT). She scored 270 on the Verbal portion of the SAT and 310 on the Math portion. This young lady took PAS 097 during the Summer Bridge Program at CSUN, earning a RCRS in the course which has qualified her for PAS 098. Her Pre-Semester scores in PAS 098 indicated a 6 on the Essay Exam, the 11th percentile on Sentence Structure and the 18th percentile on the Vocabulary Pre-Test.

This young lady entered CSUN through the EOP Program as an undeclared major. Shameika didnUt declare a major because she wasnUt sure -- and still isn't -- that college is meant for her. In fact, the EOP Counselor who first contacted Shemeika at her home and asked if she would be interested in NorthridgeUs Summer Bridge Program found herself having to explain to Shemeika just what Summer Bridge was, and that by attending it she had a chance to become the first in her family to attend college. For the Fall Semester, the tiny, shy Shemeika has put together the following schedule of courses which are contrary to what she was counseled by her EOP Bridge counselor while not even consulting with the PAS professors who taught and mentored her during Bridge: English 098, Astronomy 152, Marketing 100, Philosophy 100, Theater Arts 111, Aerobics and Math 094a.

Personal/Work Status:
Shemeika receives a Pell grant but that is the extent of her financial aid. It turns out that the Financial Aid office looked at the fact that with Trina Jackson working and the family RowningS a home with only two daughters remaining in the house, that the family "made too much money" (i.e., equity in the house) to qualify for more aid. Because of this decision, Shameika has to live at home. Overlooked is the fact that the home was badly damaged by the Northridge Earthquake and help has been slow in coming forth. She has also just been offered a job working at BuilderUs Home Emporium in San Fernando (She worked there as a junior and senior in high school to help out at home). During Bridge, she also applied for five "Instant Credit" cards including Visa, Discovery, Mastercard, American Express and JC Penney's. This young lady also has a learning disability in that she is mildly dyslexic and has ADD.