School of Education Partners with Local High Schools to Encourage College Enrollment

By: Erik Pedersen, Content Strategy Director

BALTIMORE – A new state grant is allowing Notre Dame of Maryland University’s School of Education to expand its collaboration with three area high schools, with the goal of encouraging more students to apply to and achieve success in college.

The Focus on College Understanding and Success (FOCUS) initiative, funded by a $102,000 grant from the Maryland Higher Education Outreach and College Access Program, aims to increase the number of underrepresented students who enter and complete college programs. The School of Education is working with three schools in its Professional Development School (PDS) partnership network to roll out the program – Western High School in Baltimore City, Woodlawn High School in Baltimore County, and Long Reach High School in Howard County.

Ten junior-year students at each of the three schools were selected to participate. They were each assigned a School of Education faculty member to serve as a mentor for the remainder of the academic year, and they will have the opportunity to earn college credit by attending six seminar sessions which cover essential college experience topics co-led by classroom teachers and NDMU faculty.

“These kids are amazing,” said Dr. Molly Dunn, assistant professor in the School of Education and a co-director of the FOCUS program. “They all have so many wonderful hopes and dreams, and they just need some assistance to open up the possibilities for them. That’s what this program is doing.”

A second component of the program involves the selection of two teachers at each school to help lead the initiative at their respective sites. Those teachers will participate in professional development sessions, delivered by NDMU staff members, to increase their knowledge and understanding of the college experience.

“This grant empowers the teachers to become a resource at their schools for college success,” said Dr. Dunn. “We have 30 students targeted across the three schools, but these teachers will also be able to bring the information that they’ve learned into their regular homeroom classes, expanding the number of students reached by the program.”

Topics covered in the six seminar sessions for students, which began in January and will continue throughout the spring, include potential career paths, college access and selection, the application and admissions process, financial aid and scholarship opportunities, and college success strategies.

“A lot of students weren’t aware of how many resources were available to help them navigate the admissions process,” said Dr. Stephanie Savick, professor in the School of Education and the program’s other co-director. “We really emphasized that there are plenty of people available – both at the colleges where they want to apply and within their own school – who are there to guide them every step of the way.”

“One thing I’ve tried to emphasize is that financial assistance is available,” Dr. Dunn added. “I encourage students to not just go to a college’s website, see the price tag, and close the page. There are scholarships, there’s financial aid, there are ways to make it work if a school is interested in you.”

Initial funding for FOCUS will end at the conclusion of the school year, but the initiative was developed with the expectation that it would remain sustainable at each participating school in the years to follow.

“By having two teachers in each school take on leadership roles, the hope is that they can help maintain this program for the long haul,” Dr. Savick said. “The other nice thing is that Dr. Dunn and I are already liaisons for these schools through NDMU’s PDS network, so this will be a continuing partnership effort even after the grant concludes.”

Established in 1895, Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU) is a private, Catholic institution in Baltimore, Maryland, with the mission to educate leaders to transform the world. Notre Dame has been named one of the best "Regional Universities North" by U.S. News & World Report.