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College Summit: Path to Higher Education

September 28, 2007

DPS pilot program helps students turn college aspirations into reality.

by Vince Crespin

vince2.gif    College Summit (a post secondary education preparation class) is now being offered at TJ by Eileen Adair and Jeff Coleman, to help kids who are not familiar with or are unaware they are eligible to participate in the college application process.

    The main goal of the College Summit curriculum is to get students who wouldn’t normally go to college to realize that they may be able to. The program also helps familiarize the students with the application process, exposes them to scholarship opportunities, helps them develop study skills for the ACT and SAT, and instructs them on how to write effective college essays. Jeff Coleman, no stranger to the college application process said, “I feel the college experience is the single most important experience in a person’s education, and kids need to be prepared for college. Colleges' expectations are much greater than those of high school."

    Eileen Adair, another firm believer in the importance of a meaningful college experience says, “I believe that we need to do everything possible to help TJ seniors get to college and attain their goals. The College Summit curriculum is a great way to help guide students through every step of the college application process.”

    The College Summit instructors' biggest concern coming into this year was the actual turnout for the class, as it is a pilot program at TJ. With 28 students, the class is still in its infancy and the teachers are working out some of the finer details, but the hope is that the program will grow in numbers over the years.

    Cynthia Castillo, with the Denver Scholarship Foundation, runs the Future Center at TJ and has been working alongside TJ’s counselors Stephanie Stone, Dawn Catalano and Laura Trujillo to help the students determine which universities are best for them, and which ones will be likely to accept them. Adair and Coleman work directly with the College Summit program to develop the content of the class, which stems from the College Summit Navigator, which is the actual textbook for the course. "I have worked with the College Summit class students and teachers quite a bit this year. I think that Ms. Adair and Mr. Coleman are doing fantastic work. The students have learned a lot from them and are working hard to meet their goals," said Castillo, who specializes in helping students work on college scholarships and financial aid applications.

    Theresa Gatewood, an alumni of Manual High School and of the College Summit program itself, who is the district representative for College Summit said, “To me this program is a good one because you are teaching and affecting kids earlier on in their lives.” Gatewood said about the history and future of the program, “Well, it is already nice to see how the program itself has evolved. When I was in it, it was just a workshop, now it is an actual class.  Our main goal overall at College Summit is for students to engage in classes that are applicable or relevant in the transition from high school to college. However, we are hoping to further expand the program and reach out to the younger grades as well, such as juniors, sophomores, and freshmen. That is something that is currently in the works for us.”

    As for the students, they seem to be finding plenty of reasons to take the class. “It’s cool. I like it because we have people like Mr. Coleman, Ms. Adair, Ms. Castillo and Theresa (Gatewood) who help us look at colleges, and it gives us the support that we need and a bit of a jumpstart as far as what they teach us. To have a class that helps us do all these little things, so that way we don’t have to do them on our own, is really helpful,” said Terrance Boyd, a student in the class.

    To get more information on the class, contact your guidance counselor for more details.

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Written by Vince Crespin · Filed Under News