Discovery Day XX was an incredible day for the high school students of Roseland Collegiate Prep. Visiting SSU was not only a huge inspiration to most, but the time they spent here on campus enticed them to ponder what their future may hold in terms of education.
As I journeyed around campus with the students, I noticed pretty much all of them found the surrounding area to be really beautiful and engaging. I found lots of amusement in the questions they asked me. Intriguing questions such as, “do you guys still have a passing period?” or, “do you like living in a dorm?” These questions made me remember what it was like to be in high school again and to have that experience of wondering what college life would really be like.
Felipe Avendano Perez and Pamela Cruz, students of Tim Wandling, Professor of English Literature, helped to guide the students around the campus and share details about the various areas. I noticed the high schoolers really liked the duck pond and the art center. Generally speaking, it was a great day exploring our wonderful campus.
When we finished the scavenger hunt around campus, we returned to The Cooperage meeting room in Sauvignon. There were guest speakers, Anna Eisert and Esmeralda Mejia, who represented Associated Students. They talked about the great opportunity of getting to work on campus and go to school here. They also spoke to us about available resources on campus that are helpful to be aware of such as the food pantry. Ed Beebout, Interim Dean of Arts & Humanities, also made an appearance to welcome the high school students to campus.
the scavenger hunt.
Additionally, student employees from the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) come out to show the high school students what student life is like working under EOP. The guest speakers were Marisol Esquivias, a sophomore Early Childhood Studies major, and Brenda Guzman Hernandez, a senior majoring in Psychology. Brenda and Marisol explained how joining the EOP family supports students and sets them up for success. EOP provides a plethora of resources for the students on campus such as a great transitional experience enabling students to enhance their self-management skills and successfully traverse the college experience.
Discovery Day has been proven to encourage students to attend college. It really helps when high school students get to see the campus and visualize themselves being there. I could really see how everyone's eyes were intrigued with certain parts of campus whatever it was that they related to the most.