Clark University - Clark News spring 2003
A Promise Kept
The first class of students at the University Park Campus School prepare to graduate from high school and begin bright futures
by Judith Jaeger
When the University Park Campus School (UPCS) opened six years ago with its first class of seventh graders, it was dubbed "the school with a promise." The result of an innovative collaboration between Clark and the Worcester Public Schools, the school set out to instill in these students, most of whom face disadvantages, the knowledge and ambition to earn a college degree.
"I consider this class the promise kept," says UPCS Principal Donna Rodrigues, reflecting on the upcoming commencement ceremonies for the first graduates of UPCS.
According to Rodrigues, all of these students are going to two- or four-year colleges. Many of them have excelled academically and rightfully set their sights high, applying to such schools as Harvard, Georgetown, George Washington, Boston College, Brown, Notre Dame, Boston University and Clark, which offers free tuition to UPCS graduates who meet the University's admissions requirements and who have lived in the University Park neighborhood for at least five years. Clark's involvement with the school and offer of free tuition is a cornerstone of its University Park Partnership neighborhood revitalization initiative in Main South. Twelve UPCS graduates were accepted to Clark.
To understand the magnitude of their accomplishment, you must first consider the challenges these students faced, Rodrigues says. When they entered UPCS in seventh grade, 50 percent of this class read at or below the third-grade level, some didn't speak English at home and almost 100 percent qualified for the free-lunch program. Looking back, Rodrigues admits she had her doubts about whether the school could deliver on its promise.
"I didn't know if telling the kids they can do anything would be enough," she says. "But it is."
Positive reinforcement isn't the only motivating factor that pushed these students to new heights. A conversation with six UPCS students a few months before they donned their caps and gowns reveals the keys to their personal success and the continuing success of UPCS. Tiffani Brown, Rolando Carino, Eric Goodwin, Jovan Pressie, Damian Ramsey and Jovanny Rodriguez are representative UPCS students. They are bright, friendly and perfectly comfortable conversing with an adult. Thinking back to their first year at UPCS, these students also remember the challenges.
A stressful beginning
"It was a lot different," says Goodwin. "In elementary school, it was sort of easy work, and you can't wait to go to junior high so you can get out earlier in the day. But that wasn't the case at this school. We got out at four o'clock and we had a lot of work."
A longer school day—longer than in most other Worcester public schools—longer classes and a rigorous academic curriculum with lots of homework and reading are hallmarks of the UPCS program. The longer school day, which was often followed by an hour in the school's homework center and then several hours of homework, took some getting used to.
"No free time," Pressie says. "It was too long at first."
"In the beginning, it was stressful," adds Carino. "I remember going over to Damian's house and being stressed out, trying to do homework, all the time."
With this kind of total immersion it didn't take long for these students to grow accustomed to their new learning environment. And as Goodwin points out, it didn't leave much time for getting into trouble or succumbing to peer pressure. Looking back, Goodwin and his classmates also recognize how the longer classes helped them learn more, better and faster.
"As the years progressed, you'd talk to your friends at other schools, and you'd see how much more advanced you were, and how your life has changed and was headed in the right direction," Goodwin says.
Where teachers and friends become family
Bolstering these students amid the stresses of new academic rigors was the school's small size. Each grade is limited to about 30 students, which allows for more individual attention from teachers. In turn, UPCS teachers know their students well, Ramsey says, and are familiar with their learning styles. Ramsey was not only new to the school in seventh grade, but also new to the neighborhood. The small size of UPCS made it easy to adjust and meet new friends, he says.
"Later on, they became like my brothers," Ramsey adds.
Rodriguez came to UPCS in eighth grade from other, much larger Worcester middle schools. He remembers feeling the difference at UPCS.
"When I first came to this school, I knew everyone in three days," he says.
In addition to specialized attention from teachers, the school's small size also helps create a supportive atmosphere. Again and again, the students refer to the school as a family. They even poke fun at each other like brothers and sisters, and many of them refer to Principal Rodrigues as "a second mother."
"In this school, there's a face behind the name," Goodwin says. "It makes you feel like you're somebody, instead of just a number in a crowd."
Parental involvement
"It reaches out further than just the family within the school," Brown adds, "because the parents are so involved that the teachers look to them for help sometimes. And sometimes the parents look to the teachers for help. So, we all help each other, one way or the other."
Brown's comment highlights a fundamental requirement at UPCS: parental involvement. Six years ago, aside from neighborhood residency, the only prerequisite for acceptance to UPCS was that parents had to attend an informational meeting with their children. Parents have been regular fixtures at the school ever since.
Carino's mother took evening computer classes at UPCS, and Pressie remembers her mother having coffee at the school with other parents every morning during that first year. From the look on her face, Pressie clearly thinks her mother was a little nuts to spend her mornings there. But that's exactly the kind of parental involvement UPCS promotes—regular contact with the school, its teachers, students and staff—in order to help teachers and parents address learning and behavior issues. Brown's mother continues to attend monthly parent meetings.
"Our parents understand what we're doing at the school, who we are involved with, how we are progressing academically, our actions, everything," Brown says.
For many of these students, this kind of support from teachers, parents and friends has made all the difference.
"If I didn't have that, I wouldn't be where I am," Goodwin says.
"I probably would have dropped out," Pressie adds.
Principal Rodrigues, a career educator who has lived in the Main South neighborhood most of her life, confirms these sentiments. She estimates that without the academic rigors and support inherent in UPCS, roughly half of this class would not have graduated from high school.
"Little Clarkies"
From the beginning, Clark has been an integral part of the UPCS family.
"The Clark involvement has made this school what it is. The kids here see Clark as part of this school," says Principal Rodrigues, who credits the University with helping UPCS students understand the importance of a college education. "These students don't just think college, they've been living college since seventh grade. They're like little Clarkies."
Since UPCS opened in the former Downing Street School, and even after it moved a few blocks away to Freeland Street, Clark students, faculty and alumni have maintained a strong presence at the school. Clark undergraduates staff the after-school homework center and provide tutoring. Graduate students complete their teaching practica there. Faculty members teach special seminars at UPCS, and alumni participate in a mentoring program for UPCS students. Many UPCS teachers Rodrigues notes, are Clark graduates, who invite their former professors to the school.
In addition, UPCS students regularly visit the Clark campus. They attend special seminars at Clark, eat meals in the dining hall and use the athletic facilities. Some have even taken courses at Clark for college credit. Rodrigues recalls the day she watched her students walk down Main Street to take their first college classes at Clark.
"It was incredible to see that walk," she says. "That walk isn't two blocks, it's 100 miles."
For these students, the exposure to Clark students, faculty and campus life has been just as important as the high academic standards at UPCS.
"As young students, we looked up to the people at Clark and set goals and aspirations for ourselves, so that we could follow in their footsteps," says Ramsey.
Several students mention UPCS teacher Ricci Hall '97, M.A. '98, who started teaching at UPCS in its first year, as a key influence.
"Mr. Hall had just come out of college, and he was teaching us. Most of us looked up to him because we saw how hard he worked and how great his life was going. He set a positive example for us to follow," Goodwin says.
Ripples in the lake
The University's involvement at UPCS, says President John Bassett, is part of Clark's ongoing contribution to revitalization efforts, not only in Main South, but across the city of Worcester. This broad involvement has benefits for the city and the University, he says.
"We've added something to the education of our students by actively participating in solving problems in the city. The University Park Campus School is one of the best examples of this effort," he says.
The state of K-12 education in the United States, especially the challenges faced by schools in struggling cities, is a particular interest of Bassett's. While Clark's partnership with UPCS may be an extreme example—Clark helped start the school from scratch, he notes—Bassett is hopeful that the Clark/UPCS partnership can be replicated in cities across the country.
"That's my hope, that what we've learned, like the ripples in a lake, will spread out from here," says Bassett, who credits much of the success at UPCS to Principal Rodrigues and Worcester Public Schools Superintendent James Caradonio.
Reaching the goal
When asked about what has been the best part of their experience at UPCS, these students rank Clark high on their list. Pressie also talks about the small environment. Rodriguez mentions the preparation for the future and the momentum of everyone working toward the same goals. Goodwin talks about the family atmosphere and the importance of friends.
"Your friends really help you along. When you feel like you want to quit, when you want to throw in the towel, they help you out and they try to push you along," he says. "And that goes for the teachers, too."
Brown sums up the best part of her UPCS experience this way: "I'd have to say it's the goal. Everyone at the school helped us see it more. They pushed us. They gave us the strength that we didn't know we had to get where we are now."
Read more information about Clark's involvement in the community.
A model for education reform
With the growing national emphasis on public-school performance, the University Park Campus School (UPCS) is becoming a model for education reform. With the support of an $8-million Carnegie grant and $8 million in matching funds from businesses and foundations, Clark and the Worcester Education Partnership are leading a systemwide education-reform effort in Worcester that aims to restructure the city's public schools into small learning communities like UPCS.
The UPCS formula works, as illustrated by the school's performance on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test. According to recent MCAS scores, UPCS ranked eighth out of 341 schools in the state on the math portion of the test and 11th on the English portion, and all UPCS students passed the math and English portions of the test.
The big question
After "where do you want to go to college?" the next big question for high-school seniors is "what do you want to do?" Here are the answers from the University Park Campus School students featured in this article:
Tiffani Brown: School adjustment counselor
Rolando Carino: Business management or guidance counselor
Eric Goodwin: Electrical engineer, business management or law
Jovan Pressie: Undecided
Damian Ramsey: Journalist or English teacher
Jovanny Rodriguez: Business management or medicine
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