Stewarding Your College Experience

Dr. Seth Batiste has worked extensively with developmental education students, especially those who come from backgrounds where barriers are prevalent. He has been a part of numerous initiatives impacting education for first year students, including Bill and Melinda Gates’ Completion by Design and Texas Completes. He has been in education for nearly 25 years, starting his profession as an elementary bilingual teacher before working with low socioeconomic Latinx and Black students to prepare them for college. Dr. Batiste has conducted university and community college research on student educational experiences. He works with K-12 and higher education institutions to help develop successful college-going and career-focused strategies. He has an advanced academic background in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Houston and a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies in the School of Business Management at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas. He credits much of his success to his family: Shivaughn (wife) and three kids, Stanton, Sullivan, and Sienna. In addition to domestic studies, Dr. Batiste has studied at Universidad de Salamanca in Spain and The University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago.

Dr. Marsha Fralick has been recognized as an Outstanding First-Year Student Advocate by the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition for excellence in teaching, curriculum development, and leadership over the last 43 years. She has brought together research in psychology, education, neuroscience, health, and career development to provide students with strategies for college, career, and lifelong success. Her college and career success materials are now used by community colleges and universities nationwide and in Canada. She has a doctorate from the University of Southern California with an emphasis in career counseling, a master’s degree in counseling from the University of Redlands, and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and English from Arizona State University. She has a passion for helping students achieve their goals and dreams in life through developing a positive self-concept and increasing both their skills and motivation to achieve success.