CollegeFirst, a mentoring initiative where college and graduate students help under-served high school students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses, is seeking help from new members in Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Huntsville.
CollegeFirst is a branch of IMPACT Alabama, a non-profit organization created by the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility in Temple Tutwiler Hall. It is designed to pair college mentors with AP English, calculus, chemistry and biology students in order to prepare them for AP tests in the fall.
IMPACT partners with A+College Ready, a division of Alabama’s A+Education Partnership, to improve students’ success in science, math, and English. A+College Ready provides the materials needed for the program, such as a mentor handbook, and locates AP teachers to instruct students.
The program will take place during the summer from June 4 – 28, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. until 12:15 p.m. each day. It will be hosted on campus at the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the University of Alabama at Huntsville.
Coleman Humphrey, a business student who participated in CollegeFirst last year as a calculus tutor, is currently working with IMPACT Alabama to raise awareness for the program. She explains while mentors have a great responsibility to their students, it is ultimately a rewarding experience.
“CollegeFirst is a great opportunity to work directly with high school students who are excited to learn and who really look up to college students,” Humphrey said. “As a mentor, you will be an outstanding resource to the high school students. Many of our mentors last year stayed in touch with the high school participants, and it is a tremendously rewarding experience.”
To participate in CollegeFirst, students are required to have earned a B or higher in an introductory or advanced calculus, biology, chemistry or English language course. Students are also asked to fill out an application at impactalabama.org and to provide a letter of recommendation from a professor.
As an additional incentive for participating in CollegeFirst, UA volunteers are given the opportunity to receive academic credit. The program offers UH 300 as an Honors credit and New College credit. Students must be a member of the Honors College to receive UH 300 credit, but the New College credit, a 3-credit independent study option, is open to anyone. Recipients can choose to apply the credits to either the summer or fall term.
According to College Board, Alabama ranked 43rd nationally in exams taken and 45th in exams passed in 2008. Heather Christensen, research project coordinator for the UA Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, said though A+College Ready has doubled the number of students enrolled in AP courses, there is still some work to be done.
“CollegeFirst is a great service-learning opportunity for UA students interested in mentoring and teaching high school students,” Christensen said. “Many of these students, however, are not prepared for AP coursework. CollegeFirst’s pre-AP summer curriculum addresses this issue, ensuring students are ready for college-level study the first day of the school year.”
[HOW TO GET INVOLVED]
What: CollegeFirst mentoring program
When: June 4-28, 8 a.m.-12:15 p.m., Monday-Friday
Where: University of Alabama, University of Alabama at Birmingham, and University of Alabama in Huntsville
Sign up: impactalabama.org
