BU Wheelock’s Upward Bound Hosts Students for College-Prep Program
BU Wheelock’s Upward Bound Hosts Students for College-Prep Program
Seventy students from public schools throughout Boston and Chelsea participated in a second summer of virtual programming hosted by BU Wheelock’s Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math Science programs.
The theme for this year’s program was “Are You On? Building Effective Communications Skills.” In addition to their academic courses, participating students took part in enrichment activities, read and discussed Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon, and heard from a diverse group of career speakers, including Stacey G. Harris, associate director of Boston University’s Disability & Access Services. Upward Bound Math Science students also participated in weekly STEM activities.
“Effective communication is an essential asset in college and careers and in an individual’s personal life,” says Reggie Jean, director of Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math Science. “As part of this summer’s curriculum, students learned different skills and strategies related to communication, such as expressing your ideas, active listening, and understanding others.”
For many students, it was a time to explore the many different career options that lie ahead.
“I’m not sure about my career yet,” says Eric Cho, a student at Josiah Quincy Upper School who took part in the cybersecurity STEM program. “But when I listen to all these different speakers, it helps me figure out what I might like to pursue.”
Students also took part in several volunteer opportunities that were facilitated by Upward Bound program managers Taiomi Cruz and Emily Walton. These activities included a letter-writing campaign where students sent well wishes by U.S. mail to patients at hospitals and Ronald McDonald Houses across the nation. Upward Bound supplied the materials and postage.
“For many of our students, it was their first-time sending a letter in the mail,” says Cruz. “It was definitely a learning experience for them, from figuring out stamps to just letter writing in general.”
For Kimberly Ucelolopez, an incoming student at Brighton High School, the letter-writing project was the most impactful part of the summer.
“It makes me happy to send a card that might put a smile on the face of someone who needed it,” she says.
“In our closing summer survey, 100% of the students said they would recommend Upward Bound to a friend,” says Jean. “We look forward to another cohort of students next summer.”