A group of Caroline County high school students gave up sleeping in and some summer fun to participate in the Early College Initiative Summer Bridge Program on the Wye Mills campus.

The Early College Initiative Summer Bridge program was held at the Wye Mills campus in June. Eight students, all of them rising juniors at North Caroline High School, attended the eight-day pilot program on Chesapeake’s campus in Wye Mills. The goal was to equip these students with the tools they need to be successful in Chesapeake’s Dual Enrollment program and throughout their college careers The program included to field trips, lectures, assessments and technology projects.

The Summer Bridge Program was developed as part of the Early College Initiative to prepare incoming Dual Enrollment students for the college experience. The importance of academic planning was stressed, and the students learned about the technology and support services available at Chesapeake. The participants were introduced to deans, faculty, staff and vice presidents during the session.

“We wanted to give the students a look at what can they can expect during their college experience,” said Director of First Year Programs Dana Bowser, who coordinated the summer bridge program. “We used elements of our freshman seminar content and topics of interest to Dual Enrollment students. They learned about our assessments, advising and academic planning. We took them to Washington College so that they can begin thinking about transferring to a four-year institution.”

In addition, the students visited the University of Maryland Memorial Hospital at Easton to learn about career opportunities in health care.

All of the participating students are enrolled in Chesapeake’s Dual Enrollment program for Fall Semester 2014.