July 2, 2003
Creative courses
NMC offers 125 College for Kids classes this summer
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
With 13 years experience and success, administrators and instructors at the College for Kids are not resting on their laurels.
Each summer, nearly a third of the program's instructors and courses are new, keeping the program fresh and attractive for students ages 4-17.
Drawing on the resources of Northwestern Michigan College, which is growing and changing year to year itself, College for Kids administrators hope to break last year's attendance record of 1,098. They have 125 classes on the schedule with topics ranging from music, art and technology to dinosaurs, bugs and movie production. A variety of courses covering language, culture, dance and math round out the offerings.
This year, with the opening of the new Integrated Science and Technology Learning Center on NMC's main campus, the College for Kids is taking advantage of the new facility and offering a wide array of science courses for all ages.
"One of our highlights this year is the focus on the sciences," said Carol Evans, director of Extended Educational Services at Northwestern Michigan College, which oversees the College for Kids. "Students can study chemistry in a chemistry lab and geology in a geology lab and outdoors. Another filled class is Hands on Science, which filled up quickly."
Bringing fun and education together is key to keeping kids coming back. It is also a crucial factor for attracting new students, as Evans noted that 30 percent of students every year are new to the program.
Testimonials from students like Arielle Davey, 13, are music to administrators' ears. While painting a drawer of her nightstand in a Handpainted Furniture class Monday morning, Davey reflected on the College for Kids.
"I like it, it's really fun," said Davey, who is also taking a hip hop and a keyboarding course this summer.
Instructors, too, look forward to the laid-back atmosphere of summertime, where they can explore a topic in depth with students eager to learn.
"This is just so much fun, a different medium of exploration," said Debra Anton-Coburn, who is teaching five classes this summer in the College for Kids, including this week's Handpainted Furniture and Accessorize Your Room.
During the school year, Anton-Coburn is a full-time art teacher at Holy Angels Elementary School and St. Francis High School. While she enjoys teaching art in a school setting, Anton-Coburn looks forward to the relaxed, informal atmosphere of her College for Kids classes each summer.
"For the most part, the students want to be here and there's a lot of joy," noted Anton-Coburn, who last year taught 11 classes in the program. "They sketch a design and I'm here to help them with their vision. I try not to put too much of me into it, they need to put themselves into it; I'm here as a guide."
The three-year-old Kids on Campus program is also looking to set an attendance records this year. Evans is expecting 150 students for the week, which runs from July 21-25.
The week-long program allows students in first through sixth grades to design their own week from a variety of course choices. Students can come for morning or afternoon blocks of time or attend for the whole day and all classes meet at the M-TEC building on Aero Park Drive. Options for older grades are also available.
"Each year it has grown and become larger because people like the format," Evans said. "You can pick almost a track for the week, art-related in the morning and math in the afternoon, for example. I think the idea that you select and create a day or a week of learning makes it fun."
For more information on the College for Kids, call the Extended Educational Services office at 995-1700 or check out the schedule online at www.nmc.edu/ees.