On-campus special: Support for students

Students of Algonquin College’s School of Media Design programs can turn to Ahmed Elbadri for support.

Elbadri was appointed the student success specialist (SSS) for media design students in August of 2021.

“My bottom line is student success, however cliché it sounds,” said Elbadri. “Success is not a simple definition of just graduating. My goal is to make sure the student is graduating but also getting what they want out of it.”

Elbadri helps students achieve their goals, while directing them to the right contacts when seeking information. He is “more of a meeting intensified person” and prefers to talk directly with students, rather than communicating with them through email.

Elbadri keeps the door to his office open, except for Wednesdays, for students. But in the upcoming winter semester, students will only be able to meet with Elbadri if they book an appointment for either 15 or 20 minutes.

Since being recently hired as an SSS, Elbadri has been trying to catch up with the workload.

“It’s all about managing your expectations of what you want at the end of the day,” he said.

Elbadri compares going through all his emails in a day to students finishing all their assignments the week before they are due.

“You want to make realistic goals,” he said. “If there is an influx in emails, by the end of the day I want to hit at least a percentage of my emails done or how many days prior I am behind.”