The 2009-10 cohort of Jones Scholars wrapped up their internships at local public schools and education nonprofits (AdvanceNOLA, the Young Leadership Council’s College Admissions Project, the Foundation for Math and Science Education, Lafayette Academy, Pride College Prep, Sci Academy, and Sci High) just in time for some of them to walk across the stage at Tulane’s commencement ceremony on May 15, 2010. The Jones Scholars Internship Program, which was launched by the Cowen Institute in the Spring of 2008, provides Tulane graduate students with a hands-on experience in public education, while increasing the capacity of the education community in New Orleans. The Scholars support high-impact projects focused on preparing high school students for college, decreasing drop-out rates, and improving overall educational outcomes for students. In return for the work completed by a Jones Scholar over the course of a semester, the Cowen Institute provides a competitive financial stipend of $6,000 to each intern. This program is supported by a generous donation from the Joseph and Eugenie Jones Family Foundation.
Here is what the Jones Scholars had to say about their experiences over the past year:
Laura DeBoer
Before working in the New Orleans schools with the Jones Scholar program, I heard murmurs of the poor state of education in public schools. It wasn’t until the first week of the program, when testing 2nd grade children in letter naming and reading, that I really understood the bleak reality of these schools. Children’s futures were in true jeopardy as they fall through the cracks and perform at far below state and national standards. During my time working at Pride College Prep Academy, I got to see and learn about alternative and innovative teaching strategies to build the children’s skills and close the achievement gap. For several months, I worked closely with the school principal to develop Math and English Language Arts tests to be administered on a quarterly basis to the Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders. In addition to the test, I developed a “data sheet” to store and analyze the data for the teachers. With these tools, teachers can closely track students progress and plan lessons according to test results. Skills that students did not master could be re-taught and re-assessed. I also got to assess children using other assessment tools, DIBELS, STEP, and DSC as well. It was a really wonderful experience and I learned so much and am so humbled and fortunate to have gotten such an experience.
Bradley Hentschel
The Summer High School Internship Program at Sci Academy places students in real-world internship experiences that will be useful for their college and career decision-making processes. The 6-week summer program began as an idea for experiential learning that would augment what happens in the traditional classroom, and in its first year, the program offered paid and unpaid placements for over half of all sophomores. Students take part in professional workshops that teach skills from resume writing to proper behavior in a business environment. Additionally, students and their placement supervisors receive support during the duration of the internship from program management and advisors at the school. Through this program, Sci Academy scholars learn the value of ”establishing local-level beginnings for world-changing pursuits.” Becoming a part of the Sci Academy team and developing this program has been one of the most formative times of my educational experience. I made mistakes and learned skills that I will take with me beyond Tulane. I felt the support of a young, dynamic group of educators that continue to shatter expectations by pushing themselves and their students to achieve. I know that I have left the program in hands more capable than my own, and I look forward to seeing the growth of this program in the coming years.
Amrita Datta
As a 2009-2010 Jones Scholar, my experience has been unique and very rewarding. I was assigned to the College Admissions Project (CAP), and I really thank the decision making committee for making the match. Though the goals of the project and my role in it had to be redefined according to the requirements and current status of the project, CAP project leaders Emily and Ed and I were able to work through another successful term of student-guide matches and were able keep the momentum going for the students to make progress and for CAP to fulfill it’s mission of helping students with college admissions. We also worked with YLC , where during the last leg of the project Vera and Amy played a very vital role in the design of the surveys we sent out to the guides and students both past and present. This would essentially help us assess our work and the progress CAP has made in its three years. As a support system, Felicia went out of her way to make sure I had all the help I needed to make progress. I would have liked to accomplish so much more because I think the project has so much scope. With hired (not volunteer) personnel who could be in charge of all the data and information management, volunteer recruitment and with a tighter organization framework for the project, I think CAP has the potential to grow, expand, and help students in need more efficiently and in more numbers.
The Cowen Institute is essentially like a wonderful parent taking care of not only this project, but I know many many more projects and I cannot thank them and the Jones family enough for rewarding me with this experience.
Ravi Prakash
The Jones scholar internship this spring 2010 has been a great learning experience. I was assigned to the data management project for Lafayette Academy and there could not have been a better use of the skills I had to offer. My understanding of data driven education management has not only increased manifold, but the project has given me new insights into data management and its applications. So much so that it has now influenced greatly my career choices. I would like to encourage everyone to avail themselves of this unique opportunity as a Tulane Student – to not only contribute to the education system here in New Orleans but also to be a part of this very rewarding internship.
I express deep gratitude to the Jones Family and the Cowen Institute for providing me with this great opportunity and a sincere note of thanks to Ms. Felicia Brown and Mr. James Fulton for their support.
Savannah Solomon
For the past year, I have worked with AdvanceNOLA to try to further its mission in increasing the level of college readiness in four New Orleans public schools. Our four schools are incredibly different in their resources, needs, and histories, and I honestly felt quite overwhelmed during the first part of my internship. I ended up helping to strengthen the baseline of readiness, so to speak, by creating resource documents explaining crucial areas such as college testing or financial aid. I also conducted a survey of 390 of our students in order to have a better understanding of what their needs were – from their own perspective. This experience has been incredibly humbling for me for many reasons, and I’m afraid I’ve gained more in insight and understanding than I was able to contribute to the program. While I hadn’t considered education before, I am now pursuing opportunities to help improve the business side of schools. The Jones Scholarship has certainly solidified a lifelong commitment to ensuring all students have access to a quality education and therefore a more level playing field in their adult lives.
Waving Goodbye to the 2009-10 Jones Scholars
By: Felicia Brown | May 17, 2010
The 2009-10 cohort of Jones Scholars wrapped up their internships at local public schools and education nonprofits (AdvanceNOLA, the Young Leadership Council’s College Admissions Project, the Foundation for Math and Science Education, Lafayette Academy, Pride College Prep, Sci Academy, and Sci High) just in time for some of them to walk across the stage at Tulane’s commencement ceremony on May 15, 2010. The Jones Scholars Internship Program, which was launched by the Cowen Institute in the Spring of 2008, provides Tulane graduate students with a hands-on experience in public education, while increasing the capacity of the education community in New Orleans. The Scholars support high-impact projects focused on preparing high school students for college, decreasing drop-out rates, and improving overall educational outcomes for students. In return for the work completed by a Jones Scholar over the course of a semester, the Cowen Institute provides a competitive financial stipend of $6,000 to each intern. This program is supported by a generous donation from the Joseph and Eugenie Jones Family Foundation.
Here is what the Jones Scholars had to say about their experiences over the past year:
Laura DeBoer
Before working in the New Orleans schools with the Jones Scholar program, I heard murmurs of the poor state of education in public schools. It wasn’t until the first week of the program, when testing 2nd grade children in letter naming and reading, that I really understood the bleak reality of these schools. Children’s futures were in true jeopardy as they fall through the cracks and perform at far below state and national standards. During my time working at Pride College Prep Academy, I got to see and learn about alternative and innovative teaching strategies to build the children’s skills and close the achievement gap. For several months, I worked closely with the school principal to develop Math and English Language Arts tests to be administered on a quarterly basis to the Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders. In addition to the test, I developed a “data sheet” to store and analyze the data for the teachers. With these tools, teachers can closely track students progress and plan lessons according to test results. Skills that students did not master could be re-taught and re-assessed. I also got to assess children using other assessment tools, DIBELS, STEP, and DSC as well. It was a really wonderful experience and I learned so much and am so humbled and fortunate to have gotten such an experience.
Bradley Hentschel
The Summer High School Internship Program at Sci Academy places students in real-world internship experiences that will be useful for their college and career decision-making processes. The 6-week summer program began as an idea for experiential learning that would augment what happens in the traditional classroom, and in its first year, the program offered paid and unpaid placements for over half of all sophomores. Students take part in professional workshops that teach skills from resume writing to proper behavior in a business environment. Additionally, students and their placement supervisors receive support during the duration of the internship from program management and advisors at the school. Through this program, Sci Academy scholars learn the value of ”establishing local-level beginnings for world-changing pursuits.” Becoming a part of the Sci Academy team and developing this program has been one of the most formative times of my educational experience. I made mistakes and learned skills that I will take with me beyond Tulane. I felt the support of a young, dynamic group of educators that continue to shatter expectations by pushing themselves and their students to achieve. I know that I have left the program in hands more capable than my own, and I look forward to seeing the growth of this program in the coming years.
Amrita Datta
As a 2009-2010 Jones Scholar, my experience has been unique and very rewarding. I was assigned to the College Admissions Project (CAP), and I really thank the decision making committee for making the match. Though the goals of the project and my role in it had to be redefined according to the requirements and current status of the project, CAP project leaders Emily and Ed and I were able to work through another successful term of student-guide matches and were able keep the momentum going for the students to make progress and for CAP to fulfill it’s mission of helping students with college admissions. We also worked with YLC , where during the last leg of the project Vera and Amy played a very vital role in the design of the surveys we sent out to the guides and students both past and present. This would essentially help us assess our work and the progress CAP has made in its three years. As a support system, Felicia went out of her way to make sure I had all the help I needed to make progress. I would have liked to accomplish so much more because I think the project has so much scope. With hired (not volunteer) personnel who could be in charge of all the data and information management, volunteer recruitment and with a tighter organization framework for the project, I think CAP has the potential to grow, expand, and help students in need more efficiently and in more numbers.
The Cowen Institute is essentially like a wonderful parent taking care of not only this project, but I know many many more projects and I cannot thank them and the Jones family enough for rewarding me with this experience.
Ravi Prakash
The Jones scholar internship this spring 2010 has been a great learning experience. I was assigned to the data management project for Lafayette Academy and there could not have been a better use of the skills I had to offer. My understanding of data driven education management has not only increased manifold, but the project has given me new insights into data management and its applications. So much so that it has now influenced greatly my career choices. I would like to encourage everyone to avail themselves of this unique opportunity as a Tulane Student – to not only contribute to the education system here in New Orleans but also to be a part of this very rewarding internship.
I express deep gratitude to the Jones Family and the Cowen Institute for providing me with this great opportunity and a sincere note of thanks to Ms. Felicia Brown and Mr. James Fulton for their support.
Savannah Solomon
For the past year, I have worked with AdvanceNOLA to try to further its mission in increasing the level of college readiness in four New Orleans public schools. Our four schools are incredibly different in their resources, needs, and histories, and I honestly felt quite overwhelmed during the first part of my internship. I ended up helping to strengthen the baseline of readiness, so to speak, by creating resource documents explaining crucial areas such as college testing or financial aid. I also conducted a survey of 390 of our students in order to have a better understanding of what their needs were – from their own perspective. This experience has been incredibly humbling for me for many reasons, and I’m afraid I’ve gained more in insight and understanding than I was able to contribute to the program. While I hadn’t considered education before, I am now pursuing opportunities to help improve the business side of schools. The Jones Scholarship has certainly solidified a lifelong commitment to ensuring all students have access to a quality education and therefore a more level playing field in their adult lives.