By Jessica Blizzard

(SSS 2007)

Being a recipient

of a full scholarship

to the University

of Maryland through the Incentive Program,

and as a student in AAP/SSS, I was happy but

skeptical at rst. I was not exactly thrilled at

the idea of coming to a huge campus with

campus was so big that it felt like I had to

walk an hour to get to each class. Most of my

fall classes were normal size with maybe 20

people inside, but there were occasionally

large lecture halls that held 200 students or

more. At rst I thought that I would never

Spring 2011

AAP Insider

Academic Achievement Programs

Summer Transitional Program • Student Support Services • Intensive Educational Development • Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program • Educational Opportunity Center

3rd Annual Col-

lege Goal Sunday;

read more on

page 7.

One AAP student’s

story of an “unfor-

gettable experience”

through the McNair

Program on page 8.

pose of Academic Achievement Programs.

I am delighted that our students were

willing to let our readers hear what they

have to say.

I’m excited to report that AAP students

continue to demonstrate their excellence,

commitment and determination to suc-

ceed and become University of Maryland

alumni. According to data from the Oce

of Institutional Research, Planning and As-

sity’s at-large second year rate. These are

remarkable achievements and AAP will

continue all possible eorts to improve

these indices of both the programs’ and

students’ success.

Additionally, nine AAP students, the largest

number ever, studied abroad this school

Executive Director’s

Message

Dr. Jerry L. Lewis

After only one semester as a UM freshman,

Jennifer Chen (SSS, 2006) became a White

House Intern. Advice from Jennifer: “It might

not be the best idea to leave college for an

entire semester during your freshman year.

Upon your return, you have to resume disci-

plined study. But even with that challenge, I

knew that the AAP advisors cared about us as

people rather than just another undergradu-

ate student...I felt like I had people to come

transcript review, previous work experience

and a screening, followed by a background

clearance of the prospective intern and fam-

ily. Thanks to her internship coordinator at

Rockville High School, Jennifer became aware

of the White House opportunity as well as the

other internships that she experienced at The

Gazette Newspaper, and the Montgomery

County Board of Education.

Jennifer says that “representing a minority

tasks and responsibilities that were assigned. Her

position in the Vice President’s oce included

receiving and sorting the hundreds of pieces

of correspondence that citizens send to that

oce. The correspondence can be as ordinary as

birthday greetings or get well wishes, or involve

issues that a person has not been able to resolve

at a local level.

The interns’ orientation and security brieng

warned against disclosing their position on a

and nd a job.” No doubt there is a job wait-

ing for her, but it will have to patiently wait

for Kelie to earn her masters degree in social

work from the University of Pittsburgh and

a doctoral degree that further prepares her

for work with incarcerated juveniles. Kelie

leaves UM with a 3.41 GPA. In her freshman

a freshman proved to her that “it is easier

to climb back up the ladder when you have

been at the top than it is to climb the ladder

as possible and did not see the need for an

undergraduate degree (or any degree for

that matter). I was down on universities all

together; I believed it was a necessary ele-

ment of society as we know it, but that it was

unnecessary for me. I simply was above it all.

Where did this kind of pride come from? I am

not sure. The pursuit of monetary wealth had

blinded me to true riches.

Now, school has never been so enlightening.

I have a renewed sense of motivation in my

pursuit of knowledge. I nd myself trying to

maximize all of my opportunities. The Univer-

sity of Maryland truly is a world of opportu-

nity. Experience has taught me that life truly

is what you make of it. Extending yourself to

fellow human beings is a skill that separates

you from the masses and opens you to an

¬ Continued on Page 5

endless road of opportunity. I have

come into contact with students

and faculty that are helping me go

to the next level on my journey to

success. They say one nds one-

self in college, and I am denitely

a proponent of this view. Once I

determined the value of education

in my life, my experience took on

another form.

a friend whose son was assisted by the

center to apply for nancial aid and

college admissions. The friend recom-

mended that he visit the Lanham-

based oce right away to see what

search for work.

“I’d never heard of the program and

didn’t know what to expect in terms

of what they could do for me. I didn’t

go with any expectations, but what I

left with was more than I could have

asked for.”

With the assistance of the UM-EOC

and Associate Director Lisa Peyton-

Caire, King was able to examine his

munity College’s STEP HI Culinary

Arts Associates Degree program, and

began work in January 2011 on his BA

in Business Management at the UMUC

through the PGCC-UMUC Alliance.

“The UM-EOC was there when I

needed answers and options, and I

am forever grateful for the assistance

I received. A resource like this one is a

Godsend to the community”.

American Females Battling Juvenile

Delinquency.” The topic was developed

with guidance from faculty mentor and

for mer McNair Associate Director, Dr.

Wallace Southerland III. Later in the year the

program sponsored travel to the University

of Tennessee-Knoxville McNair Conference

where she was able to network with other

scholars and present the research again.

Kelie says that in her four years the AAP

• “It is crucial to work hard, but do not work

so hard that you drive yourself to torpor.”

• “The best part of my college experience

was my sorority AKA [Alpha Kappa Alpha].”

(Ms. Danielle Foreman)

Get involved and mingle with other people.

A good way to relieve the stress of tedious

assignments and monotonous lectures is to

have fun. Find some time to enjoy yourself.

There are so many clubs and organiza-

tions. And even if time doesn’t allow you to

join any at a particular time, it is still good

experience prepares you for life.

Thought Box

“Prioritizing is essential to

academic success.”

- Matthew (SSS 2006)

programs. The event is just one of the ways the UM-EOC provides information, aware-

ness, and hands-on help to residents to advance postsecondary education enrollment

and completion in Prince George’s County.

More than 26 volunteers representing a host of organizations including Johns Hopkins

University, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Howard University, Bowie

State University, PNC Bank, Mocha Moms of Northern Prince George’s County, College

and Career Pathways, and others, were on hand to lend their time and expertise. The

UM-EOC relies on partnerships to advance awareness of its program and to reach eli-

gible residents with services that bridge the knowledge and access gap that character-

izes the experience of many adults and families in the County.

The UM-EOC extends a special thank-you to the following partners who continue to

support its eorts each and every year:

College Goal Sunday is a national event created in 2001 by the Indiana Student Finan-

cial Aid Association, and is now managed by the YMCA-USA with support from the Lu-

mina Foundation. Activities in Maryland are coordinated through by the Mid-America