Principal Veronica Kisor led a small group of students on a trip to Grand Canyon University to take campus tours and learn more about the school. Grand Canyon, which often partners with Center Line teachers for continued education, offered an all-expense paid trip to see campus in Phoenix.
Scholars got to tour Grand Canyon University and stayed in the school’s dorm rooms. They got to visit academic buildings and programs they were interested in.To qualify for the trip, scholars had to be recommended by their school and hold at least a 3.0 GPA. Once on the ground in Arizona, these five scholars got to tour campus and experience a taste of what college life is like. Scholars stayed in dorm rooms on campus for two nights and were able to learn more about specific academic programs.
Kisor said students were excited to fly West and wear shorts in February.
The trip to Phoenix required a long plane ride and a suitcase full of warm-weather clothes, something Kisor said scholars were excited to pack.
“When I asked for a rating out of 10, most of them gave them between an eight and a 10, so they had a really good experience,” Kisor said. “I had one of them even saying, ‘Hey, I think I'm going to actually proceed with enrolling in this school because I like this so much.’”
The cross-country plane trip inspired one student to begin the process to potentially attend Grand Canyon University.
Scholars also got to experience what life might be like outside the classroom. The group went to a Grand Canyon basketball game and saw the Lopes bring home a victory.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for five scholars, and one that Kisor thought was important to take.
“It's one thing to hear about the college experience or to hear somebody talk about it, but to actually live the life of a college student is different,” Kisor said. “They see the sleeping quarters. They got to see where they actually take classes. It helps the students imagine themselves there. They got to see other people on the campus that look like them. I believe that was the thing that made it accessible and exciting for them.”
The trip was a first for Kisor and Center Line, but she doesn’t want it to be the last. It also helped Kisor think about how she wants to discuss college readiness with scholars at all levels. Kisor said she wants to incorporate more exposure for younger scholars.
“I think that exposure is key,” Kisor said. “I want to start taking students at different grade levels to college campuses. So by the time they graduate from Center Line Preparatory Academy, we really prepared them for the next day in life.”
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About Center Line Preparatory Academy
Center Line Preparatory Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Center Line, Michigan, serving students in Young 5s through 12th grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.
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