“Twenty-three students came, twenty-three
left with a college credit
and we couldn’t be prouder.” – Chris
Fernando
Through a collaborative effort between the Albany City School
District, Albany High School, the SMART Scholars Program and
the University at Albany Science & Technology Entry Program,
the Summer Residential Program was created. The Smart Scholars
Early College High School Program was developed to increase
high school graduation rates and college completion rates
for underrepresented students. By allowing high school students
to earn college credit, our hopes are to inspire these young
scholars to achieve throughout their senior year and beyond.
The purpose of the Summer Residential Program was to give
the rising seniors in the Albany City School District the
opportunity to familiarize themselves with college life. The
program lasted three weeks and was quite an experience. Twenty-three
high school students enrolled into the program and became
UAlbany students, living on one of the four main quads of
the UAlbany campus, Dutch Quad. They attended classes and
learned the essentials to succeed during their first year
of college.
Another advantage of the Summer Residential Program was that
it made the students more independent and responsible. Students
that were nervous or disliked the idea of going away for school
learned that they could live away from home. Understanding
how rigorous and stressful a college workload can be, students
learned how to manage their time more efficiently and effectively.
By the completion of the program, the students learned how
to be independent and competent college students.
Our high school students developed life-long bonds with our
student staff who served as Resident Assistants (RA) during
their stay. Not only did the RA’s oversee the students,
but they also provided day-to-day mentoring to assist them
with their transition into college. To this day, our summer
student staff remain in close contact with the high school
students, as they ready themselves for the next stage of their
lives.
