Student U Summer Curriculum

During the summer, Student U college students teach middle school students in academic and elective classes. Students attend Student U five days a week for six weeks, engaging in four academic classes (Math, Science, English, and Global Connect), two elective classes, and a physical activity each day. The average class size is eight students, with an overall student to teacher ratio of 4:1. The small classes provide an intimate learning environment in which students' individual needs can be addressed and students and teachers are able to form a close-knit Student U community.

Key components of the summer program include:

• Academics: Curriculum is designed for Student U based on the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. Under the guidance of experienced mentor teachers, the college-age teachers design and implement units of study that engage students and enable students to understand the ways in which their academic work is relevant to the wolrd outside the classroom. With a 4:1 student teacher ratio, an intimate learning environment is created, ideal for enabling the individual needs of students to be addressed while meaningful relationships are formed between students and teachers. Skills taught at Student U are necessary skills for students to master before starting the following grade. Content for courses focuses on topics which will be discussed the following year, allowing Student U students to be familiar with material when school begins.
• Mentorship: Throughout the summer, students are in an academic environment which is engaging, fun, and relevant. Students are taught how to make connections between skills taught in the classroom and the world outside the school walls. After forming relationships will college students, Student U students recognize the potential benefits of graduating from high school and entering college. Students grasp the vast opportunities which are available for those who successfully complete high school and commit to work as hard as necessary to do so. During Family Time, students and teachers discuss the obstacles which face adolescents in Durham through middle school and high school and create action plans for how to combat these obstacles, make healthy decisions, and succeed.
• Experiential Education: Students visit Washington DC, the Beaufort Marine Lab, and the U.S. National White Water Rafting Center. Students explore potential career paths during Student U's Career Day and learn what is necessary in order to attend college during college visits at Duke, UNC-CH, and NCCU. Students learn how they can use their skills to make a difference in the world, both during Student U's Service Learning week as well as through academic and elective classes.