STAFF WRITER
WENDY VanDELLON

The St. John Fisher College campus was host to more than 150 people on Nov. 4, including Rochester City School District 4-year-olds, their parents, teachers and support staff members for the “Pre-K @ College” program.

The program was designed to allow exposure to a college campus for Rochester City School District parents and to view the potential for their children’s future.  Diversity was also a factor as many School of Education and Fisher students spent the day with a varied group of adults and children. The College is also attempting to build a collaborative network with the Rochester City School District at the earliest possible level.

“We were very excited about the day,” Jennifer Duffy, student placement coordinator for the Education Department said.  “For a first run, I think it was a success.  It’s our goal to continue doing this.”

The program was designed to welcome the entering class of 2019.  Seeing the children on campus allowed the parents to see that college is attainable and that education is a process.
Planning for the event began in May 2006 with the involvement of the School of Education, Office of Multicultural Affairs and Diversity Programs and the Rochester City School District Early Childhood Program.  A mix of volunteers, faculty and community members were responsible for the implementation of the activities during the day.

Beginning the day, parents and children checked in and commenced a scavenger hunt.  They were divided into groups of 10 according to a color-coded system.  There were also fun shops for the children including a pennant puzzle, the manners song, the future me, finger painting and the community helper’s song. 

The idea behind the fun shops was for parents to work with their children and then finish the projects at home if needed.  One fun shop was held by the Wegmans School of Nursing where students learned about health issues, received Band-Aids and listened to their hearts.

The day provided activities for parents such as a College Admissions Program, which provided academic strategies as well as educational guides to help their children succeed.

“You experienced it on two levels,” Dr. Jim Wood said.  “The activity and energy of the children was there but also the idea of having them on a college campus makes you look at them in a different light.  They are future 20-year-olds.”

Student groups such as the Teacher Education Student Association Club and Black Student Union were responsible for organizing and providing many of the volunteers that helped make the goal of the program attainable.  There were also a number of students from Franklin High School who contributed their services to the activities.

Email address: wjv00222@sjfc.edu