TRIO Site Supervision Letter of Evaluation for Ariana Chini, candidate for Masters in

Student Development Administration

Dear Ariana,

I am writing to provide the final supervision letter of evaluation for your 200 Hours
Summer and Fall Quarter internship with the TRIO Student Support Services office at Seattle
Central College (SCC). There were three over-arching objectives we collectively outlined in
your internship work plan that I will review: 1) Assessment; 2) Program Development; and 3)
Program Restructuring. This was an ambitious plan given the time-limits of the internship,
however through working to understand the foundations and emerging nature of the Student
Affairs profession and higher education, you were proactive in moving the work plan forward
and also adjusting some of these initial goals as needed based on the needs of the program.

During our check-ins, I was continually impressed by how much you reflected on your
learning at Seattle University and compared/contrasted that experience with your internship here
at Seattle Central. You were always very engaged with both staff and students while present,
absorbing as much as you could while also practicing some of your newfound skills in Student
Development. The majority of your internship assessment and research products were used to
strategically drive changes in our program structure. Much of the data you collected directly
from students was useful in helping us consider where we have room for changes to make our
programming stronger and more effective. You also brought considerable skill sets in organizing
and presenting data in a streamlined and concise manner, which is a huge strength and one that
will allow you to be a strong presenter throughout your career.

As professionals, it is also important to focus on opportunities for growth. I would say,

in the future, be mindful of your work load and the commitments youve taken on. I noticed how
much you were juggling and taking on both here and in your other commitments at Seattle
University and with your part-time job. As a young professional it is important to stretch
yourself and gain multi-faceted experiences in a variety of settings. However, every
commitment, if not balanced, has a cost and I hope you can find balance in your professional
priorities with non-work life, which is equally important for us as leaders. Staff and students will
look to you as an example, so its important to model behaviors that you feel will keep morale
high and keep your internal well of reserves strong.

I encourage you to continue to ground yourself in your own identities and deeply analyze
why education has been important to you, and use that as future motivation towards your next
steps as a professional in Student Services. Your analysis in higher education and barriers to
student success for first-generation college students and students of color is clear and will only
continue to blossom as you take on new roles in institutions of higher learning. It has been a
sincere pleasure to work with you. Please keep me in mind as a reference and I hope to stay in
touch over your coming years of success as a Student Services leader.
Best of luck in all your future endeavors,

Ariana Cantu, MSW

Director, TRIO Student Support Services

Seattle Central College

1701 Broadway, 1102B1

Seattle, WA 98122

Ariana.Cantu@seattlecolleges.edu