Adelante, Cybercamp, and Kids College All Lead to Future Merritt Success

Adelante, Cybercamp, and Kids College All Lead to Future Merritt Success

 A large group of 58 high school students (pictured) are now all incoming freshman at Merritt this fall thanks to the Adelante Summer Bridge Program which gave them the tools to gently transition toward the next step in their education. The four-week program focused on college success and career exploration, with classes in English and Counseling, and a chance to make new friends. “Our mission is to provide a supporting and caring environment to these students who we recruited from Oakland feeder high schools, the majority from underserved populations,” says Counselor Rosa Perez, who coordinated the program with the help of Marty Zielke. “We were so proud to participate in their graduation celebration, and now to see them walking around campus is a great feeling.”

Students in CyberCamp Get Valuable Experience for Future Careers

Young students who wanted to learn about cybersecurity, get hands-on experience, and find out about education and career options were thrilled to be part of a five-day Cybercamp. This year Merritt was invited to participate in this nationwide effort by the Air Force Association to inspire students to pursue STEM-related activities outside of . “This was a wonderful opportunity for students with an interest in computer science, technology, engineering and math to get experience for their,” says Anita Black, Program Director for Merritt’s Cybersecurity Program, who oversaw the camp which was coordinated and led by instructor Beverly Brooks. “We hope to see some of the participants in our own program in a few years!”

 Kids College Completes 7th Year of
Hands-on Fun and Education 

Turning educational lessons into fun hands-on experiences is a specialty of Merritt’s Kids College, along with great counselors and positive talks on the importance of going to college, and this year was no exception. By the end of the two-week camp, the 30 students in 6th-9th grades had learned about topics including microscopy, nutrition, capoeira, fire science, art, and administration of justice with a surprise visit from an OPD helicopter which landed on campus as part of Margaret Dixon’s AJ presentation.

“By the end-of-camp celebration, the campers presentations showed how much they had learned,” says Camp Coordinator Ne’Shawn Dixon, who worked with Dr. Siri Brown. “It’s amazing and gratifying to watch.” Thanks to faculty and staff volunteers Margaret Dixon, Sean Gascie, Laura Cooper, Brian Rowning, Mary Louise Zericke, Elaine Wallace, Eric Hansen, and Chelsea Kubischta, and others, as well as Roy Wilson from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom Center.