New CLST courses being offered

Courses help students looking to excel in learning strategies and mentoring

Attending college can be an exciting experience for new and seasoned students alike, but at the same time, it can be overwhelming and even confusing if students are not prepared for their classes. To help students start their collegiate career, the Bruckner Learning Center is offering a set of classes on learning strategies as well as “mentoring” courses.

According to the Liberty University course catalog, College Learning Strategies Classes (CLST classes) range from “Foundations for Academic Success” to “Advanced Reading/Vocabulary Reading” and are open to all students because they have no prerequisites. They can be registered online through ASSIST.

“We have a wide range of students taking our courses,” Director of Bruckner Learning Center Heather Schoffstall said. “Some students take a particular course to improve in a specific area, others are required to take certain courses based on their academic standing.”

Schoffstall also mentioned that they have a total of 310 mentoring students and 480 CLST students this semester.

Chris Boontjer, a sophomore and club wrestler for Liberty University, is one of the students taking advantage of the CLST courses offered. He is currently enrolled in the “College Learning Strategies” class, which is also known as CLST 101.

“CLST 101 is geared toward the freshman and sophomores who desire help in study strategies,” Schoffstall said in an email interview. “Topics include time management, listening and note-taking, test-taking and test anxiety, memory, learning styles, reading, goals and motivation, stress, academic policies and critical thinking.”

Boontjer is positive that CLST 101 is helping him academically.

“The class has been everything I expected,” Boontjer said. “Already, it’s taught me things I didn’t know about organization and how to manage my schedule.”

Boontjer claims that he was “one of those freshmen who came to Liberty with college under wraps,” and laughs about how far he has come.

“My attitude last year killed me,” he said. ”I took AP classes in high school, so I thought I knew how to study and was expecting Liberty to be easy. It’s so different. In college you are treated like an adult.”

The Bruckner Learning Center has also added a course this semester that specifically caters to new students.

“MENT 101 is being offered for the first time this semester,” Schoffstall said. “[It is] designed for the incoming freshman who desires mentoring and accountability through small group instruction to help with the transition from high school to college.”

Schoffstall also added that all courses count for elective credit and that all courses, with the exception of MENT 100, are one-credit courses. MENT 100 is a three-credit course that was formally known as CLST 100.

According to their official website, the Bruckner Learning Center is located on the third floor of DeMoss Hall right next to the elevators. Their business hours are from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.