Say Yes to Education welcomes 130 summer camp counselors to campus for orientation and training
Over 130 area college students will begin training Monday June 15, 2009, to work as camp counselors for the Say Yes to Education Summer Camp program that begins July 6th and runs full days through August 7th.
National Say Yes to Education President Mary Anne Schmitt-Carey will be the keynote speaker at the opening ceremony for the counselors in Hendricks Chapel beginning at 11 AM. Syracuse University Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor will also be in attendance to greet the students.
Counselors were selected from a pool of over 400 applicants for their various interests and skills, creative thinking and positive energy. They will spend two weeks training in the areas of lesson planning, community building, first aid, and classroom management. CNY Works , OnPoint and Literacy Corp students were among those hired.
In addition approximately 100 area teachers will teach in the camps as part of the Urban Teacher Calendar, a program aimed at making summer school more available to students by having a large pool of teachers available to work during those months.
Nearly 800 elementary students, ages 7-10, who attend Elmwood Elementary, Dr. King Magnet Elementary, McKinley-Brighton Magnet, Meachem Elementary, Roberts and Van Duyn Elementary are participating in the free summer camp program. Campers will spend mornings engaged in challenging academic programs and afternoon activities will include sports, music, nature, science and field trips.
Say Yes to Education, Inc. a national, non-profit foundation that began more than 20 years ago, is committed to dramatically increasing high school and college graduation rates for urban youth. The success of the program relies on providing positive academic supports, including after school and summer camp programs, tutoring, mentoring as well as social, emotional and legal supports to children and their families that enable and inspire students to graduate from high school, accomplish post-secondary education success, and achieve meaningful life goals, including giving back to their community. The program culminates with the promise of free tuition for all Syracuse City School District students that meet graduation, residency and college admissions requirements.
To find out more about the Say Yes to Education program, go to www.sayyessyracuse.org