Fifty Camden Teens Prepare to Enter Inaugural Rutgers Future Scholars Program

For Immediate Release

CAMDEN --  Starting this summer, 50 rising eighth-grade students in the Camden public school system will begin to prepare for college through a comprehensive Rutgers program that will provide the teens with academic and social development support throughout their secondary school careers and tuition support at Rutgers upon graduation from high school.

The Rutgers Future Scholars program launches this summer as a multipronged initiative to strengthen Rutgers’ commitment to diversity and to encourage enrollment by talented students in underrepresented populations from the university’s host communities.  Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, has regional campuses in Camden, New Brunswick/Piscataway, and Newark.

Rutgers President Richard L. McCormick initiated the program in an effort to reach minority and low-income students who “might otherwise never consider college within their grasp.”

In the City of Camden, the inaugural Rutgers Future Scholars class will spend an intensive weeklong introduction to college life during July 7-11, when the Camden teens will meet current Rutgers-Camden students who graduated from Camden schools; engage in programs related to the fine arts on the Rutgers-Camden campus; and attend courses in such areas as science and law.

The students also will learn about career opportunities through sessions at the Rutgers-Camden Career Center and will engage in athletics activities on the Rutgers-Camden campus.

“Our goal during this week is to introduce these students to the many opportunities that college has to offer,” explains Nyeema Watson, associate director of the Rutgers-Camden Center for Children and Childhood Studies and director of the Rutgers Future Scholars program in Camden.

During subsequent summers, the current Rutgers Future Scholars will participate in four-to-six-week residential summer programs designed to promote academic skills in mathematics, language arts, and the sciences.

Watson notes that the Camden teens will be mentored by Rutgers students throughout the academic year, and will be invited to the Rutgers-Camden campus regularly to participate in cultural, academic, and athletic collegiate activities, including a Rutgers class.  Rutgers Future Scholars will be offered PSAT and SAT training.

“This program will help Camden teens to prepare for college,” says Watson.  “Perhaps more importantly, we intend to help keep these students in high school so that they graduate.”

The project has special significance for Watson, a 1995 graduate of Woodrow Wilson High School in Camden.  “It was difficult for me to get ready for college,” she recalls.  “Camden’s teachers are all deeply dedicated to their students.  This Rutgers program offers that extra support that will help to change the lives of Camden’s kids.

“The most important aspect of the program will be the relationship between the students, their families, the school district, and Rutgers, with all parties working together to support these students in their academic and social development,” continues Watson, who was appointed by New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine to serve on the Camden City Board of Education.

“Rutgers-Camden is proud to welcome the first Camden class of the Rutgers Future Scholars program,” says Rutgers-Camden Interim Chancellor Margaret Marsh. “This exciting pilot program is just one example of our dedication to extending wide and open access to the life-changing opportunities that a Rutgers degree offers.

“While this is an ambitious program, it simply cannot accept every Camden child or teen.  Rutgers will continue to work with the Camden school district to offer support on how to help all students build their academic skills and stay engaged and committed to the education process while in middle and high school,” continues Marsh.

The Rutgers Future Scholars program will select a new cohort of students annually until each host city has a total of 200.  Students are selected jointly by school districts and Rutgers.  Participating students must demonstrate financial need and academic potential, and come from underrepresented family backgrounds. 

The families of Rutgers Future Scholars will be asked to help their students to maintain a 90-percent attendance rate a grade-point average of 2.5 or better  (out of 4.0).

Camden families interested in learning more about the Rutgers Future Scholars program are encouraged to contact Nyeema Watson at (856) 225-6738.

-30-