Middle School Students to
Sample Collegiate Life

A group of 125 students from Vina Danks Middle School in Ontario will get a taste of collegiate life while attending a special Inside College Day on Friday, Feb. 29, a daylong visit that will include a laboratory experience at Keck Science Center, lunch at Collins, student panel discussions, a campus tour, and presentations on athletics, financial aid, and graduation ceremonies.
William Corrette, vice principal of the school, says the goal of the event is to encourage local disadvantaged students to go to college. "Even if we impact three or four students that would be a victory," says Corrette, whose Catch the Vision program seeks to identify and motivate under-performing students. "It's tough to break a cycle of not pursuing higher education when no one in a child's family has gone to college. We will be tracking these students through high school to keep the vision alive. It will be interesting to see that data five years from now."
Students will be sent a mock admission letter from the Admission office, admitting them to the day's program, and will be bused to campus, courtesy of the Kravis Leadership Institute at CMC.
Beginning with their 9:45 a.m. arrival and reception in Butler Plaza, middle schoolers will be split into five groups of 25 and escorted through a series of events by 50 CMC student volunteers. Associate professor of physics in Joint Science Adam Landsberg, who partnered with Corrette to make the event possible, will be the first to host the young visitors to laboratory presentations from 10:45 a.m. to noon at Keck Science Center.
Students will then break for lunch at Collins before attending an afternoon panel discussion with current students, a campus tour, and presentations in Bauer Forum by director of athletics Mike Sutton, vice president for financial aid Georgette DeVeres, and vice president and dean of students Jeff Huang.
"As a follow-up, we will also be holding a separate financial aid seminar with parents of the Vina Danks students later this year," Landsberg says.
Before they depart, participants each will receive a T-shirt (designed by Cindy Thio '08), a backpack with school supplies stuffed by students of the Berger Institute for Work, Family, and Children, CMC pins and pens donated by the Office of Alumni Relations, and dictionaries provided by The Kravis Leadership Institute. Scripps College also is lending financial support via the Scripps College Academy Program, Landsberg says.
Beth Ricca, director of internships and volunteer programs and associate director of the Career Services Center, says CMC has hosted other middle school students on campus in similar venues.
In addition to CMC student volunteers, a dozen staff and faculty from the College and the Joint Science department, including Admission Counselor Matthew Burris '07 who helped coordinate the visit, will assist in leading the day's events.