by Rob Christensen, '00

In March I was awarded the RMHUC's Summer Community Service Fellowship to work at Denver Summerbridge. Briefly, Denver Summerbridge is part of a national network of 40 programs in various cities for motivated and talented low-income youth, which provides an academic and fun environment for six weeks in the summer. As a teacher, I trained for two weeks, taught for six, and spent a week cleaning up and doing evaluations. There were 28 high school and college students teaching 90 middle-schoolers math, literacy, science, and cultures. Everyone was divided into a "family," consisting of four teachers and 10-15 students. I taught literacy to the STARS, 9th graders spending their third and final year in the program. In addition, STARS was a special program, including service learning and leadership in its curriculum. Organizationally, above the teachers are two deans of faculty, a dean of students, an assistant director, and the executive director. This describes Denver Summerbridge on its surface.

What isn't quite captured in this description is what truly makes Summerbridge remarkable. Summerbridge is about the spark in a child's eye -- about nurturing and challenging that spark. Summerbridge unearths and kindles this spark with enthusiasm, learning, and love. Every day the students arrived yelling and clapping, excited for a new day. They stepped off the bus to a line of high fives and bright smiles. Each day ended with the same care; students boarded the buses with teachers running around, reminding them of homework and giving high fives through the bus windows.

The days began with classes that would challenge the students and introduce them to material they would encounter in the upcoming school year. The afternoons were lighter, with time for homework, games in "chill-time," and non-academic electives like making hair ties, drill team, or acting. The afternoons also included All-School Meeting, an assembly where classes could present their work to the rest of the community, students could be recognized for spirit and achievement, and speakers could come in to teach the students about some of the difficulties they may face in their future.

The staff were more than just teachers, they were also friends to the students. This personal care and connection is what makes Summerbridge so successful. We often forget how hard it is for these students to succeed. In the face of broken families and communities, low standards at home and in their local schools, poverty, and the stresses of adolescence, our students often persevered despite numerous strikes against them. For the teachers, our role included calling home, visiting families, informing and encouraging students about some positive options for the future, and role-modeling success and a positive attitude.

Summerbridge is also an incredible program for its staff. Never before have I worked with a group as talented, caring, respectful, and positively challenging as the Summerbridge staff. Daily, we would share problems the students were having, rave about kids who inspired us, discuss policies and upcoming activities, and thank each other in a activity called "Kudos". At the end of the program each staff member gave a Presentation of Learning on what they had learned from Summerbridge. The power and hope that Summerbridge had fostered in everyone's life made these emotional presentations an awesome spectacle.

The summer ended in Celebration, a sort of graduation for the students. It was here, in the tearful eyes and voracious hugs of the students, parents, and teachers, that we truly saw how important Summerbridge is in the lives of these disadvantaged students. I left Summerbridge hopeful, knowing that such an incredible program exists, wiser to the life, and wanting to return. This summer reaffirmed so much in my life, and I will return to school with a clear and bright spirit -- I know that lives changed and people shined in this program.

I must thank the Rocky Mountain Harvard Club for making such a summer possible, and for providing a vehicle -- a little reminder -- that Harvard students can help improve the lives of others and the community. I want to leave you with a quote from Helen Keller that one of my co-teachers left in our little yearbook which captures the spirit of Denver Summerbridge and its students:
"One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar."