Conference at Calvin Helps Students STEP Into College

June 4, 2004 == MEDIA ADVISORY

A June 16-18 conference at Calvin College will help approximately 100 seventh
through twelfth graders take their first step into a real college experience.

The Striving Toward Educational Possibilities (STEP) conference takes place at
Calvin each year (under the umbrella of the college's Pathways to Possibilities
program) as a way to encourage junior high and high school students who might
not think college is within their grasp.

But this year's conference has a little twist. It was organized completely by
STEP alumni - Calvin senior Anissa Adkins, Michigan State junior Geoff Powell
and Grand Rapids Community College sophomore Jonathan Jelks.

Together the trio has planned an event that, beginning with the campus move-in
at 2 p.m. Wednesday, June 16 and ending with a closing ceremony at 10 a.m.
Friday, June 18, will be a whirlwind of classes, workshops, panel discussions,
worship services and fun activities - all focused on encouraging students, many
of whom attend core city churches in Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Holland, toward
post-high school education.

STEP, says Rhae Ann Booker, Calvin's director of pre-college programs, fosters
an environment where students learn firsthand what it's like to be a college
student.

The STEP conferees will live in Calvin residence halls, eat their meals in the
campus dining halls and register for simulated college classes, just like
regular college students. Among the many offerings are such courses as:
Political Science 101: The Difference of One Vote, Biology 101: Milk Does a
Body Good, Sociology 101: Real World, The Teenage Years, Computer Technology
101: You've Got Mail, Journalism 101: You, The Reporter and Business 101:
From Backpack to briefcase. Calvin faculty members and area professionals
teach the simulated courses and Calvin students assist throughout the
conference.

Adkins worked as a residence advisor at the 2003 STEP conference and came away
from that experience with some ideas for improving the event. When she brought
them to Booker she was challenged to take a leadership role for 2004.

"I went to Rhae Ann," Adkins recalls, "and gave her some ideas about how
things could be better. She threw it back at me and said, 'Why don't you plan
it?'"

Adkins, Powell and Jelks have worked some subtle changes into the schedule,
which they hope will have profound results. The team has replaced the usual
keynote address with a panel of community and college leaders, who will address
the students' questions about the college experience.

"We've tried to make it really relevant to where they are," Adkins says.

The trio also organized this year's STEP as a contest, with points awarded for
every activity. Students will compete in groups of 20 to receive a bonanza of
gift certificates from area stores.

All of the changes, on top of the normal planning, have made this a hectic
time for the three organizers.

"When we first took it on, we definitely didn't understand all the work that
goes into it," Adkins says. "Rhae Ann's been very supportive throughout the
whole thing, but I definitely feel responsible. Excited too."

Booker says the involvement of Adkins, Powell and Jelks is a heartening
development.

"It's a good feeling," she says, "to see the students come back and take a
leadership role in the program and have a positive impact on the lives of
upcoming youth."

Pathways to Possibilities is a college-church urban youth initiative,
supported by grants, corporate giving and administered through the office of
pre-college programs at Calvin. Through the program, Calvin partners with local
churches to encourage children and youth to value learning, seek academic
success and higher education and strive to live responsible lives.

For a color pic of Adkins see
http://www.calvin.edu/news/photos/students/adkins.jpg
For more on STEP see http://www.calvin.edu/admin/precoll/step.htm

-end-
Received on Fri, 04 Jun 2004 13:21:49 -0400