The Academy of Civic Life (ACL) is a preparatory program at Stony Brook University that addresses inequality in access to higher education and prepares students from financially disadvantaged families and underrepresented backgrounds for success in college and university life.
This summer, Stony Brook hosted a group of 17 students from Brentwood High School for three-week courses in civics, democracy and activism. At the end of July, a luncheon was held to celebrate the completion of the residency portion of the program and the students were recognized as Junior Human Rights Commissioners for Suffolk County.
“This is our third summer doing this, and I couldn’t be more impressed with this group of students and the student assistants who have guided and mentored them,” said Amy Cook, professor in the Department of English and Vice Provost for Academic Affairs. “They have completed the summer residency at ACL and are now preparing for the portion of the academic year where they will receive advice on college applications and complete a civic engagement project. These students have amazed me throughout, and I am thrilled and excited about what they have learned here.”
Funded by the Teagle Foundation, ACL provides classroom work and field experiences for students who see themselves as scholars who want to shape the future of their community and be responsible and engaged members of their community. During the three-week program, students worked closely with student assistants who offered academic support and mentoring, helping them adjust to the demanding intellectual work of college classes and navigate the challenges of the application process. In workshops, students learned strategies for successfully navigating college life and covered topics such as time management, stress management, and maintaining a healthy work-school-life balance.
The students took a one-hour college course, Academy of Civic Life, taught by ACL faculty director Tracey Walters, a literature professor and former department head. in Africana Studies at Stony Brook, where she also holds a tenure in the Department of English. Students read classic and contemporary texts on the history of civics, politics, labor, and democracy and interact with written, film, and audio materials that tell essential parts of the story of democracy.
Students worked to develop the literacy skills that will help them succeed in college and beyond. They were encouraged to engage with challenging philosophical and political texts and put them in conversation with contemporary authors and current events. Students then contributed their opinions and perspectives to discussions and debates about democracy and politics.
“This is my third year in this role, and each year the experience becomes richer,” said Walters. “I am very impressed with the quality of your work and your professionalism in the classroom. These young people came to class on time and well prepared every day. They participated with enthusiasm and really made it a wonderful learning experience. I learn as much from them as they learn from me.”
During lunch, student presenters delivered their own commencement speeches, written by themselves and inspired by their personal concerns, and shared their experiences in the ACL program.
“We learned a lot during the program,” said Knoa Pettus, one of the student facilitators. “Some of it was practical, some of it was educational, some of it was eye-opening, but it was all impactful.”
“We learned a lot in this academy,” said Karla Rivera. “And we will use what we learned in our senior year for civic engagement projects. I will be doing volunteer work and the academy has definitely improved my social skills.”
“I’ve learned a lot from the insightful discussions in class, but I’ll be ready to educate myself and those around me about things happening in the world and what we can do to impact them,” added student Dane Paul. “My commitment to civics is driven by a desire to make a positive contribution to my community in Brentwood and make a difference.”
The parents were proud of the development and social awareness of their children, who are now beginning their senior year of high school.
“When we found out about the program, we were really excited because we knew our daughter’s interests were in philosophy, civic engagement and the like,” said Ke Pettus, Knoa Pettus’ father and a graduate of Stony Brook’s Master of Social Work (MSW) program. “We knew that these professors and this faculty would take good care of her once she arrived on campus. We trust this school, it’s our home. And we’re excited to see what’s to come.”
“She was so excited about the programs and I was really happy about that,” added Nicole Pettus, Knoa’s mother and another graduate of the Stony Brook MSW program. “She really stepped out of her comfort zone. She loves writing, but I never expected her to speak publicly. We were so proud.”
“It has been a privilege to see how these students have built, formed and strengthened connections in many ways over the past few weeks,” said Elizabeth Bojsza, Assistant Professor of Practice at the School of Communication and Journalism, Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science® and ACL Program Director as she addressed the program graduates. “You’ve made connections with each other, and you’ve made connections between your ideas and the ideas you’ve read about from these authors. Now you’re making connections between the things you learned in a supportive learning community that you helped build and your own community. And that’s what today is about. It’s about bridging the porous boundaries of class and learning community into our living communities and making a difference where we are.”
— Robert Emproto
