Pitt-Bradford to Offer Summer Enrichment Courses for High School Students

Reprinted Courtesy of 1490 News Blog

The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford will offer short enrichment courses for high school students this summer to introduce them to the worlds of criminology, web design, medicine, television production, social work and what to expect in college.

Each of the courses lasts for two or three mornings or afternoons. With the exception of Crime Solving 101, each session costs $59. The crime-solving course is $89. Class sizes are limited, and registration is limited to students who have completed grades 9 through 12.

“These courses were initiated partly as a response to cuts in state funding for high school enrichment programs, such as the Seneca Highlands Summer Academy and the Pennsylvania Governor’s Schools,” said Dr. Lauren Yaich, associate dean of academic affairs. “Some of the topics we’ll be doing are not necessarily covered in a typical high school curriculum, so it offers a chance for students to explore new areas of study.”

Ray Geary, executive director of the Division of Continuing Education and Regional Development, said, “We have had summer enrichment programs for younger students and thought that high school students would benefit from a similar program as well.”

The first program will be “Crime Solving 101” from 9 a.m. to noon June 11-13 with Dr. Tony Gaskew, associate professor of criminal justice and director of the criminal justice program at Pitt-Bradford. Students will learn basic forensics and interview and interrogation skills used by investigators to solve crimes. During mock crime scenes, students will learn how to preserve and collect evidence and hone listening, observation and body-language reading skills.

“Making Your Own Website” will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. June 12 and 13 with Dr. Y. Ken Wang, assistant professor of computer information systems and technology. Students in this course will learn to use web-development tools to build their own website. They will learn how to determine the layout, style and content of the site. At the end of class, there will be an open exhibition of the newly created websites (subject to parental and student consent).

From 10 a.m. to noon June 19 through 21, Yaich will tackle “Medical Mysteries – Solved,” a look at unusual and puzzling medical conditions and recent advances in biology that have begun to solve these medical mysteries. Yaich is an associate professor of biology and has been awarded the Pitt-Bradford Chairs’ Faculty Teaching Award and the University of Pittsburgh Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award.

“College: What to Expect – and Not!” with Margot Myers will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. June 27 and 28. Myers, who is the program manager for TRiO Student Support Services at Pitt-Bradford, will help students learn about ways to make college work, what to expect from college and what college expects from students. Issues such as academic-social life balance, syllabuses, what college assignments are like, what clubs to join and living with a roommate will be explored.

Aspiring broadcasters can explore “Television Studio Production” with Jeff Guterman, associate professor of communications, from 9 a.m. to noon July 16 and 17. Students will learn how to create television news broadcasts, interviews and other types of programs in a real-life, multi-camera digital studio environment. They will learn about the roles both behind and in front of the camera and will learn how to perform for the moving image, produce, direct and serve as a studio production assistant.

“Live While You’re Dying: The Ways we Deal (and Don’t Deal) with Death” will be held from 10 a.m. to noon July 24-26 and taught by Stephanie Eckstrom, coordinator of the Master of Social Work program offered at Pitt-Bradford. The class will explore the different issues related to death and dying, using a sociological lens.

Registration for the enrichment classes begins April 1. For more information or to register, contact Pitt-Bradford continuing education at (814)362-5078 or contined@pitt.edu.

For disability-related needs, contact the Office of Disability Resources and Services at (814)362-7609 or clh71@pitt.edu.