MCC Daily Tribune

Closing the Achievement Gap One Event at a Time

MCC Upward Bound was proud to collaborate with nine MCC Downtown professors to present the 7th Upward Bound Shadow Day on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. Upward Bound is a pre-collegiate program that targets students who will be in the first generation of their family to go to college. The goal of Shadow Day was for students to have a non-intimidating while simultaneously inspiring "first-dip" into a future career or major. Students attended one or two MCC classes in the morning and a debrief over lunch. The following professors are among those who participated in this project: Elizabeth Mandly, Joe Scanlon, Melanie Rivera (also an Upward Bound alumna), Adrian Smalls, Craig Waleed, Njeru Murage, Erin Nelson, Michelle Parker, Eileen Radigan, and Dina Giovanelli. Students benefited from the professors' passions and expertise in Human Services, Sociology, Criminal Justice, English, History, Psychology, Education, and Biology. The students' highlight of the day was getting to be part of these classes. They made comments about their psychology class such as, "I learned about the cognitive development of a child"; "I learned new words and phrases, the reason why some specific behaviors happen" ; "The best part of my day was being able to experience a college class, especially an insight on the career I am pursuing"

Students also commented on the biology class: "Biology made me more open towards science"; "I learned that the larynx assists in sound production" and "The best part of my day was touching the heart of a pig even though it was disgusting".

They also learned from the education professors: "The best part of my day was the class because it was interesting and told me what I should expect for college" and "I learned what a social story is and about self-management"

Students also raved about their human services class. "I learned how to handle clients that don't talk and how to handle aggressive clients" "The best part of my day was sharing my story with other and opening up to others"

Students also learned about U.S. History in Professor Murage's class. "I learned slaves help build the United States, tobacco was a cash crop, and economy in colonies were based on hierarchy"

While students were not in class, they were getting a better understanding of the Downtown Campus and all it has to offer through a Scavenger Hunt. Students had to answer questions about the campus and go to the different offices to find the answers. They learned where to find the parking office, what SEGA is, and where they can work out should they attend here in the future.

The Director of Student Services at the Downtown Campus, Kim DeLardge, concluded the day with a presentation after a delicious lunch made by the Downtown Campus's 321 Café. Students learned about the importance of preparing for college now by preparing well for their Regents exams and eventually their Accuplacer exam.

At Upward Bound, we do not think of ourselves as staff, students, or guest speakers. We think of ourselves as family: immediate and extended. We certainly could not have made this event possible without the help of all of our "extended" family members this year. Thank you to all who made it possible and we hope for an even larger turnout from our student body in the events to come such as our Holiday Meet and Greet.

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Natalie Fabretti
Upward Bound Programs
11/21/2018