Joshua Foronda is well aware of the challenges many freshmen encounter when adjusting to college. During his first year at California State University San Marcos, he struggled academically, failing several classes and ending the spring semester on academic probation with a 0.6 GPA. He even considered dropping out.
Foronda’s resilience paid off, and by the time he graduated in 2018, he had raised his GPA to 3.3, earning degrees in criminology, justice studies, and sociology.
Today, Foronda uses his undergraduate experiences to help a new generation of CSUSM first-year students as a student success coach for the university’s Office of Success Coaching.
“Students feel like it’s the end of the world when their grades are not on point,” Foronda said. “But I tell students that every setback leads to a bigger comeback.”
The Office of Success Coaching has transformed the way CSUSM serves first-year students, providing personalized support services to ensure newly admitted students thrive.
“Coaching is a relatively new functional area in higher education,” said Jennie Ruiz, the interim director of the Office of Success Coaching. “We’re focused on being proactive before something spins out of control. This is a program that really works with the student as a whole person. We’re a pipeline to resources, but we’re also here to be cheerleaders, give them guidance and be their support system to set that foundation in their first year.”
For many Latinx students, the first year of college is crucial, as it shapes their academic experience. CSUSM’s Office of Success Coaching supports a seamless transition from high school, fosters first-year achievement, and encourages persistence into the second year.
Ruiz said each success coach works to help students feel more comfortable asking for help while facilitating culturally responsive and relevant support.
That work is part of a larger university effort to serve Latinx students, who comprise 52% of CSUSM's undergraduate population. Earlier this year, CSUSM earned the prestigious Seal of Excelencia, a national certification for institutions that strive beyond enrollment and more intentionally serve Latinx students. CSUSM is one of only 17 colleges and universities to earn the Seal of Excelencia in 2024.
On average, retention for Latinx first-year students in success coaching is 10 points higher than for Latinx first-years not in the program (77% vs. 67%), and 8 points higher than for all first-year students not in coaching (77% vs. 69%).
“Cal State San Marcos is one of the best schools for Latinx students,” said Anita Rodriguez, a second-year criminology and justice studies major who is a student assistant for the Office of Success Coaching. “We have a strong Latinx community. Many of my professors come from Hispanic backgrounds, and as a Hispanic student, it makes me really happy to see people with a similar background teaching us.”
The Office of Success Coaching, established during the COVID-19 lockdown, supports the onboarding process and tackles first-year retention challenges for underserved and historically excluded students, including Latinx, Black/African American, and first-generation students. The program aids new undergraduates in understanding higher education and navigating their first year on campus. Given the pandemic’s disproportionate impact on communities of color, Success Coaches remain committed to equalizing opportunities by meeting students where they are. Open to all students, this support system offers personalized guidance to help every student adjust and thrive during their first year.
Success coaching works similarly to a life coach. It starts at the beginning of the student life cycle and focuses on creating a clear pathway for students to achieve their ultimate goal of graduating and transitioning into a career. This involves assisting students in setting goals, keeping track of key deadlines, and discussing their aspirations.
Those conversations proved invaluable for Cecilia Bravo, a second-year kinesiology major who benefited from the program a year ago and now works as a student assistant for the Office of Success Coaching.
A first-generation student, Bravo grew up in Palmdale, about 3 hours north of CSUSM, and was trying to adjust to being away from home for the first time. She credits her success coach, Samantha Bosch, with helping to alleviate some of the initial loneliness she felt.
“In high school, I didn't really find the resources that I needed, and that made me shy away from asking for help coming to college,” Bravo said. “Knowing that I had this office that was literally directing me to resources or giving me the resources I needed took an immense amount of weight off my shoulders as a first year [student]”
It is a sentiment echoed by Rodriguez, who had Foronda as her success coach last year.
“As a first-generation Hispanic woman, Josh helped me become an academic weapon, which helped me navigate my first year in college,” Rodriguez said. “He was a great support system and helped me with my time management. He always brings energy, and that’s what I needed.
They’re called coaches and they really are – they cheer you on throughout your entire academic first year.”
It’s not difficult for Foronda to relate to the students he mentors. Like so many of them, he, too, was navigating school, work and family during the pandemic. In May 2021, he received his master’s in counseling from San Diego State.
“When I graduated, I sent all my students a video and said, ‘Hey, this is going to be you in a few years,’” he said. “I wanted to let them know that if I can do it, I know they can, too.”
“One thing I’ve learned: It takes a village to raise a child, but it takes a university to graduate a student.”
About the author
Eric Breier is the interim assistant director of editorial and external affairs for the University Communications office at California State University San Marcos. He writes for the university’s website, magazine and email newsletter. Before joining CSUSM, he spent two decades as a newspaper editor and reporter.
