Alison Witherspoon, Quinnipiac vice president of strategic programs & partnerships, said the innovative partnership helps expand student access to transformative pre-college experiences.

“By combining resources, Quinnipiac University and Achievement First are removing financial barriers to provide students from schools across three states with the opportunity to explore academic interests, experience residential college life and envision their future possibilities,” Witherspoon said.

Achievement First high schools support students with a tuition-free, college-preparatory public charter education focusing on rigorous academics, extended learning time and intensive college counseling. At Achievement First Amistad High School in New Haven, Connecticut, Director of Summer Programs Lauren Cohen manages pre-college partnerships across Achievement First’s network of six schools including those in New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut; Brooklyn, New York; and Providence, Rhode Island.

Cohen said the new partnership with Quinnipiac serves to strengthen students’ college-going identities.  

“We always want students to go to great pre-college programs so they can explore a passion or interest, and Quinnipiac offers so many different types of programs. We’re so thrilled for them to have this academic experience while they’re also getting that real-world, college-going experience,” said Cohen.

A large percentage of Achievement First students will become first-generation college students, Cohen said.

“To be able to live on campus, interact with students from all over the country, interact with professors and faculty and to see themselves on a college campus like Quinnipiac is so powerful,” said Cohen.

Witherspoon said the enthusiasm from the high school students, Achievement First and Quinnipiac faculty have made this partnership an immediate success.

“Students are participating in six different pre-college programs ranging from healthcare and microbiology to filmmaking, game design, creative writing and sports communications, giving them the opportunity to discover new interests while experiencing life on a college campus,” said Witherspoon.

Attendee Israa Ahmed, 16, joined Quinnipiac’s intensive, two-week Healthcare Career Exploration camp, during which students earned two college credits transferrable to Quinnipiac.

“It was probably the best experience I had during my summer,” said Ahmed. “This was my first time attending a program like this. I was really nervous because it was a new experience, but as soon as I got there, I loved the beautiful campus and I had wonderful roommates. It made me even more excited to go to college.”

Ahmed said the program’s opportunity to explore different disciplines through coursework, hands-on learning and experiential field trips crystalized her decision to follow a post-secondary academic path to a healthcare career.

“The faculty were really good at explaining everything and they gave us a lot of good advice. I realized I specifically want to do something with pediatric care, and I realized that I will definitely be applying to Quinnipiac in the future,” said Ahmed.

Cohen had the opportunity to visit with Ahmed at Quinnipiac’s School of Health Sciences during her pre-college summer program experience.

“Just seeing the types of hands-on experiences as well as the research they were doing was really cool,” Cohen said. “I was also very excited about the healthcare exploration program being a credit-earning opportunity. For me, that provides an even more rigorous opportunity for our students.”

Attending the Game Design Lab pre-college program in the state-of-the-art gaming lab at Quinnipiac’s multidiscipline SITE building helped Geovanny Benavidez, 17, to set the pace for his future as a college student.

“Due to this being my senior year, I wanted to see what college would be like first-hand. Living away from home for two weeks, having to schedule my time like waking up early to go to classes for eight hours, or deciding if I wanted to do something after class, really gave me the best experience,” said Benavidez.

Benavidez said he also wanted to figure out if his love of gaming could translate into an academic and career path.

“I’ve had academic classes to get ready for college, but this program really helped me consider game design as a choice. Our instructor told us about the different areas you can get into in the gaming world, and that you don’t have to be a jack-of-all-trades; that if you dedicate yourself to something you love, you can find a career out there,” said Benavidez.

For 16-year-old Isaias Flores, attending Quinnipiac’s one-week Modern Storytelling: Moviemaking program at the School of Communications was a hit.

“I really like movies and writing and I’ve always watched behind the scenes and thought it would be nice to do something like that one day,” Flores said. “I never knew how to do all the things I’ve been learning, like working with lighting equipment so colors go from warm to cold or how to control audio.”

Engaging in this pre-college experience has deepened Flores’ interest in attending college. He’d like to study psychology and stay involved with film as a club activity.

“It’s been really great,” Flores said. “I’m always open to any opportunities — even if it’s a small thing, I’ll raise my hand. This opportunity was honestly a really huge surprise because I’ve never been to something great like this.”

Witherspoon said developing this new partnership demonstrates what's possible when organizations come together to invest in student opportunity.

“We are grateful to Stephanie Jacobson, associate provost for faculty affairs and development, for helping forge this connection and to Achievement First for their commitment to expanding access to high-quality summer learning experiences. The strong engagement from all parties has laid the foundation for what we hope will be a lasting and impactful collaboration,” Witherspoon said.