College Advisory Committee Starts School Year Intiatives

Fifteen students from New London’s three colleges, as well as interns and a student teacher, will begin assisting in the classrooms of the this year, the chairman of the College Advisory Committee reported on Thursday.

Chris Soto spoke to the Board of Education at their regular monthly meeting to update members on the recommendations the committee made for the academic year. The board and it has since been meeting to help strengthen the relationships between the public schools and the , , and as a way of improving student achievement.

“I think what’s more important is we’ve gotten this collaborative approach back on line,” said Soto.

The committee had made three specific recommendations: the development of an Advancement Via Individual Determination mentoring and tutoring program, an “access intern” created through the guidance office, and the use of student teachers from Connecticut College. Soto said there are 15 students for the AVID program, as well as three access interns and one student teacher, who are attending a training session on Saturday and will begin work in the schools a week later.

Under the AVID program, trained students from each college will provide hour-long tutoring sessions twice a week throughout the school year and serve as mentors for the high school students. Funds for this initiative will be provided by each institution. The Coast Guard Academy will lead a program evaluation plan, while the district will evaluate the success of the program through methods such as test scores and satisfaction surveys.

The access interns, from Connecticut College and Mitchell College, will work with the high school guidance office to help seniors through the college application process. The work will count as a work-study requirement, and the interns may also provide assistance in areas such as SAT preparation and financial aid programming. Evaluation will be based on the standards of the National College Advising Corps.

Soto said the committee will meet more infrequently during the school year, but will still convene about once every two months. He said the seven-member group—with  representatives from each college as well as the high school’s student body, guidance office, and AVID program—will discuss the sustainability and effectiveness of the initiatives. The committee is also considering a program focused specifically on SAT preparation.

Board of Education Vice President Susan Connolly and Secretary Jason Catala praised Soto for his work in establishing the committee and setting up the initiatives

“You were energetic and you were very thoughtful…and I just wanted to go on record to thank you,” said Connolly

“I think we need more people like you in our district working on behalf of our kids,” said Catala

Superintendent Nicholas Fischer said he appreciated that the programs would also be looking into the lower grades. He said one goal would be to have more students qualify for the National Merit Scholarship tests, which can offer full reimbursement for university education.

“This kind of thing cannot be done overnight,” he cautioned. “It has to be done over several years.”