University kicks off college experience program

The University welcomed ninth graders across East Baton Rouge Parish on Monday to experience a two-week college experience program.

"Focusing On College and Unlimited Success" is an arts, humanities and science summer immersion program offered and sponsored by the Honors College for students who attend under-resourced high schools.

"The goal of FOCUS is to engage high school students in an academic setting that will allow college leaders to facilitate activities and lessons to expand those students' expectations of themselves and their perspective on what opportunities are available," said Jackson Voss, FOCUS music seminar leader.

The program was started to give students from Baton Rouge area high schools without strong humanities programs the opportunity to simultaneously experience college life first-hand and explore the arts.

FOCUS is paid for by Honors College grants. The program offers scholarships to fund on-campus housing at Blake Hall and meals at campus dining facilities.

Laura Delatin, FOCUS director of service learning, said FOCUS strives to motivate students to go to college and achieve their dreams.

Students kicked off their FOCUS experience by participating in the UREC Challenge Program at the UREC Sport & Adventure Complex on Monday. The Challenge Program helps organizations develop stronger leaders and team members.

Delatin said she hopes the Challenge Program helped students quickly bond and trust one another as well as their leaders.

The Challenge Program is the participants' "first push to get out of their comfort zones," Delatin said.

Students will also attend a host of activities, seminars and events throughout the program. There will be group competitions, a dance, a talent show and a field trip to downtown Baton Rouge.

Students attending FOCUS will participate in three seminars daily, consisting of six main subjects – philosophy, creative writing, art, dance, theater and music.

Students attend three seminars one day and the other three the next day. Participants will also attend workshops with subjects varying from microbiology to college prep.

"The reason we teach the humanities is because these are the subject areas that tend to be lacking in under-resourced schools," Delatin said. "We are not pushing them to pursue the humanities in the long run, but we want to expose them to options that they may have never thought about."

In addition to workshops and seminars, students choose one of six subjects to "major" in. This concentration will determine which FOCUS period the student will attend.

Voss said he hopes he can help encourage participants' pre-existing individual desires.

"FOCUS helps to teach these students to express themselves in various ways while also inspiring the students to dream big, come up with an idea of what they want to do with their lives and figure out what it takes to achieve that dream," Delatin said.

On the last day of the program, known as Final FOCUS Friday, students will display the products of their study. Each FOCUS group will perform or present a project to their families, peers and college officials.

"Whether it'll be a song, story, play they wrote or a philosophical debate exploring the existence of God, it will all be up to our students for what will be presented, making it all the more special for us," Voss said.

FOCUS encourages students to break out of their shells and introduces them to new opportunities at LSU.

"You can really see why FOCUS is important as you watch some of these students form passions and dreams they never considered possible," Delatin said.

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Contact T.N. King at tking@lsureveille.com