LEMONT FURNACE, Pa. — Haley Miller, from Masontown, Pennsylvania, has graduated early after completing a bachelor of science in criminal justice in just three years from Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. Miller participated in accelerated learning opportunities offered by the Pathways to Success Summer Start program (PaSSS).
The PaSSS program, now in its ninth year of operation across the Penn State system, invites eligible incoming first-year students to complete 6 credits during the summer before their first semester. Participants receive a scholarship of up to $1,500, a book stipend of $400, guaranteed on-campus employment and peer mentorship throughout the academic year.
Students who successfully complete the first year may enroll in 12 additional credits during the following summer with a scholarship of up to $3,000. Returning PaSSS students serve as student-mentors to the incoming class.
“The PASSS program has helped me build friendships and learn organizational skills, and it familiarized me with all the opportunities this campus had to offer me. This essentially made integrating into college a lot easier and a lot less stressful,” said Miller. “There have been many faculty, and staff who have helped shape me into the successful student I am.”
Miller is a first-generation college graduate, part of the 50% of Penn State Fayette’s student population for whom the transition from high school to a university setting can be challenging.