Trish Akpan
The one thing I’ve heard students tell me over and over for the last decade is that I’m “real”. That’s because I understand everyone has their own set of challenges, and no one should be looked down on because of them. We’re all human, and we all equally deserve love and respect. When I was in college, I had to deal with coming out as lesbian in my 30s and being disowned by the community I had grown up in, being a single mother of two biracial children, and being on Medicaid and foodstamps while I was raising my daughters. I also had to navigate university life as a first-generation student (I had no clue how things worked or about all of the resources that were available to me at the time), and I had dyslexia and dyscalculia (also unaware at the time of the accommodations I could have received). It is because of my experiences and lack of knowledge that made college life harder that I wanted to become a student success coach. It is my deepest desire to walk by your side and help you find the resources and learn the skills needed that will make your academic (and post-college) journey as smooth as possible.
A little more about me… I have worn many hats in higher education over the last 20+ years, ranging from a custodian to a math professor. I have a passion for teaching mindfulness and self-compassion (ask me more). I initially learned those skills in therapy, and I had the opportunity to build on it experientially while living at an ashram (Parmarth Niketan) in Rishikesh, India for a total of two years.
385-867-0110
trish.akpan@utah.edu