Hiram to Adopt Notre Dame College’s Thrive Program

HIRAM, Ohio – Hiram College announced Friday that it will adopt Notre Dame College’s Thrive Learning Center, with plans to serve as the new location for the program after the closure of Notre Dame at the end of the spring semester.

Thrive is a comprehensive fee-based support program that provides educational opportunities and support services beyond those required by law to individuals with documented learning disabilities that impact educational environments. 

Typical documented disabilities and learning differences include neurodivergent conditions, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, autism spectrum disorders, learning disabilities/disorders, mental health diagnoses, health-related diagnoses and disorders of executive functioning.

Benefits of the program include unlimited, one-on-one content-focused professional tutoring; weekly check-in meetings; dedicated private tutoring spaces; assistive technology coaching; a proctored and accommodated testing center; teaching of self-advocacy techniques; major and career exploration; networking and job placement; and more.

All students currently enrolled in the program at Notre Dame College will be guaranteed acceptance into the program at Hiram following the same stipulations outlined in the Notre Dame to Hiram teach-out agreement signed between the two institutions in February.

“Hiram College has long prided itself on our robust student support and engaged faculty,” said Jeffrey Swenson, interim vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college. “We are excited about how the Thrive Learning Center – with its excellent staff and learning support structures developed at Notre Dame College – will broaden what we can do for students. And we look forward to welcoming Thrive students to our campus; we can’t wait to see all they will contribute to the Hiram community.”

Denise Brown-Triolo, program director for the Thrive Learning Center at Notre Dame College, will continue to lead the program at Hiram. Brown-Triolo has more than 20 years of professional experience working in academic settings with students and individuals with learning differences and other disabilities, 18 of them as a school psychologist.

“I am so happy to make this move to Hiram College and bring the services of the Thrive Learning Center to the Hill,” Brown-Triolo said. “Hiram College’s initiatives in neurodiversity and inclusion make it a perfect landing spot for the Thrive Learning Center. Thrive started as the Academic Support Center in 2005 with just four NDC students and has touched the lives of over 600 students since then. I look forward to providing this opportunity to more students so they can grow and succeed.”

More information about the Thrive Learning Center is available HERE.

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.