ALBION —
The Hoag Library in Albion isn’t set to open until the weekend after Independence Day, but preparations are well underway for a two-week summer camp for a select group of Albion students.
The program, a joint effort between the library, the Albion Central School District, the Xerox Foundation and a generous private donor; will provide 10 students entering the ninth grade this fall with a curriculum designed to open their minds to opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and inspire leadership skills. It follows similar programs in the Rochester area.
“It really is all about exploration, excitement and exposure,” said Elissa Nesbitt, the Xerox Foundation’s Director of Community Relations. “Showing kids a different world that they’ve never seen or never knew it existed.
While Nesbitt told the Swan Library Board of Trustees Wednesday that the shape of the program is being settled, it will in part revolve around the FIRST Lego Program. The program is national competition for pre-high school aged students that is similar to the robotics competition that a Orleans County-based team joined this year.
Students for the program were selected based on their strong grades in the advanced science program and inhibiting factors that may otherwise deter them from pursuing this type of learning.
“Kids with intelligence and ambition, but not necessarily the means,” Nesbitt said.
Kathie Valley, who retired last year after a long teaching career in Medina, will lead the program. Valley said she’s spent the past months researching inspiring examples of men and women who’ve been successful in technology-related fields and making contacts with science and technology departments at local colleges.
“Once I get a goal, I’m relentless,” Valley said.
The program will include a service learning aspect and connections with local industries.
“It’s exposure that’s different than what they have in the classroom,” Valley said.
The Swan board approved the plan last week and it will be presented to the Albion Board of Education soon, Nesbitt said. She said the program is supported by the school’s past and present administrations — former Superintendent Ada Grabowski wrote the grant for the program.
The plan is for the school to provide a small group of students each year to participate in the summer camp and activites throughout the school year. The library will monitor the program and host its technology — including an interactive white board. It’s funded by an initial $25,000 from the private donor and assistance from Xerox.
“We hope kids will get engaged and it’s a turning point in their lives,” Nesbitt said.
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