Summer Academy is a component of the grant-funded program called Project Teacher Development that I co-direct with Dr. Miriam Witmer at Millersville University.
Originally, our grant was funded for the period from July 2018-December 2018. However, due to a special collaboration with Lancaster Partnership Program (LPP) for the Summer Academy 2018, not all funds from the original contract were needed. The original contract of July 2018-December 2018 was therefore extended until July 2019 to include an additional Summer Academy with additional funding from a second Community Engagement Grant from the Center for Public Scholarship and Social Change, College of Education Dean’s Office, and the Educational Foundations Department.
Summer Academy III 2019 was offered from July 21-25, 2019, for seven (7) SDoL students specifically interested in careers in education. Two (2) Millersville University students served as chaperone-mentors. Summer Academy is a residential college experience designed to teach students to recognize and develop strategies for moving through life and preparing for their future career. The residential camp allowed students to experience campus life while also learning more about preparing for college and careers in education.
Previously, the Summer Academy II 2018 ran from July 8-12, 2018, on the campus of Millersville University. Eighteen (18) SDoL students participated in this weeklong residential college preparation experience.
Note, Side by Side 2018 (SBS II), is another another component within Project Teacher Development, discussed in other sections of this e-portofilio. In 2018, the program was offered from September-December 2018 at JP McCaskey High School as a 10-week intervention-style program conducted with two groups of high school students. Group 1 met during 5th period and group 2 met after school every Tuesday during the course of the program. Twelve (12) to fifteen (15) students participated each week in special programming designed to motivate, inspire and educate students to consider careers in education.
Student Outcomes:
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Students demonstrated an appreciation for culturally responsive teaching practices.
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Students gained knowledge and skills to be successful in college, such as: financial aid, college application process, moral reasoning, and values clarification.
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Students read two books during the Summer Academies- Sometimes you Win and Sometimes you Learn (Maxwell, 2015) and Inspiring Teens (Vidakovic, 2016). Students internalized the life lessons presented in these texts.
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Students completed the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI), which assesses students’ attitudes and interests in college and academic success.
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Three (3) students in PTD have presented at either state or international academic conferences. They gained confidence as well as a better understanding of how scholarship is disseminated.
Program Outcomes:
1. Nine (9) students from PTD enrolled at Millersville University in Fall 2019. There are also others involved in PTD who enrolled at other universities, but we did not have full access to the entirety of those records.
2. Both SBS and the Summer Academy provided students the opportunity to actually prepare and teach lessons. While students initially felt like this would be very much outside of their comfort zone, they all reported that they enjoyed the experience and they accepted the challenge of being a teacher.
3. The number of students admitted into the Color of Teaching Mentoring Program (CoT) increased because students were made aware of this mentoring program during the PTD programming. Once enrolled in CoT students receive ongoing support from a college student mentor.
4. Additional financial support was received by the Dean of the College of Education and Human Services, and the Center for Public Scholarship and Social Change. This support enhanced PTD and demonstrated the University’s continuing commitment to urban schools and teacher preparation.
Student Participant Feedback
The following testimonials are just a sampling of students’ thoughts during the course of the project to date:
“I can speak in front of a group when I have to and not be shy.”
“I am going to work on stepping outside of my comfort zone as well as asking for help when I need it.”
My goal is “to graduate, go to college, major in early childhood and minor in special ed.”
My goal is “to eventually come to this school [Millersville University] & become a teacher.”
“My new dream is to be an ESL teacher for young kids.”
PTD.SDoL_Report_Final_2019
SA_III_2019_award_letter_Center for Public Scholarship
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- Students with their certificates
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- Students, Parents & Staff
