2010-06-22
High school students from around the region are taking part in college classes this summer through the Southeast Ohio STEM Academy at the University of Rio Grande/Rio Grande Community College and two other local institutions.
Rio Grande is partnering once again this summer with Shawnee State University and Ohio University Southern for the Southeastern Ohio STEM Academy. The program is funded by the Ohio Board of Regents, and provides a great opportunity for local students.
Through the three-week program, students take one week of classes at each institution, learning about subjects such as chemistry, Spanish and statistics.
“It gives the students a head start on college classes,” explained Barbara Hatfield, Ph.D., associate provost and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Rio Grande. All of the students will be seniors in high school in the 2010-2011 school year, and this program gives them a taste of what college classes are like. The classes challenge the students academically, but are also taught in a comfortable learning environment in order to help them succeed. Faculty members from each of the institutions are taking part in the program and working with the students.
The program also lets the students experience what it is like to live on a college campus and allows them to visit different types of institutions. Students are able to live at Shawnee State University and Rio Grande, and they are able to learn more about community colleges, state universities and private universities through the experience. Rio Grande is a unique institution that has both a private university and a community college.
The students also are able to learn more about the branch campus of a major state university by taking classes at Ohio University Southern, but there are no residence halls on that campus.
The students are able to earn college credits by taking part in the program, and the tuition costs are covered by the grant funding.
Social and recreational events are also planned for the students while they are living on the different college campuses, so that they are able to make strong friendships with other high school students from the region and so that they enjoy their time in the program.
This is the fourth year that Rio Grande has participated in the Southeast Ohio STEM Academy, and Rio Grande officials are proud of the partnership with Shawnee State University and Ohio University Southern. STEM programs in Ohio are designed to increase interest in different subjects of study and to encourage high school students to attend college.
Thirty high school students from around southeast Ohio are taking part in the program this summer, and they are learning a great deal through the experience.
For more information on the Southeast Ohio STEM Academy, or for more information on other summer programs at Rio Grande, call 1-800-282-7201.
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