PRESS RELEASE

More camp photos here.

Kids College expands world for Marion middle schoolers

KOKOMO, Ind. — When Skyla Diskey grows up, she wants to be “some kind of doctor.”

As an incoming seventh grader at McCulloch Junior High, she took initial steps toward her career goal by attending Indiana University Kokomo’s Ignite Your Future Kids College.

“You can make new friends and learn about what you want to do when you get older,” Diskey said of the experience.

She was among nearly 50 rising sixth and seventh graders from Marion Community Schools attending the weeklong day camp on the IU Kokomo campus.

Program director Brandi Keith, adjunct professor of sociology and student success, said Kids College helps students begin thinking about potential majors and careers before high school, so they can take the classes they need to be prepared for college. For the Marion students, it also showcases IU Kokomo as a campus of choice close to home.

“We wanted them to experience the college environment and what career opportunities are available to them – maybe even some they hadn’t thought about,” she said. “They had a good time and picked up some new information they might not have had anywhere else.”

Each day included fun educational activities, like looking at the skies in the Observatory, taking fingerprints with campus police, taking a nature walk with a geologist, creating geodesic domes out of straws with IU Bloomington’s Uplands Maker Mobile, learning to read food labels to make healthy choices, and more. IU Kokomo student ambassadors and Marion teachers led the groups.

They also visited a Reality Fair, hosted by Financial Builders Federal Credit Union. Each student chose a job, received a salary, and then had to go from table to table paying their bills.

Amiya Jones, a Justice Intermediate School sixth grader, has greater appreciation for her adults because of the experience.

“It can be a lot, especially paying for stuff every month,” she said. “We see what our moms and parents and guardians have to do, and how much they have to put into everything.”

“It was eye-opening to see how much everything is,” agreed Angelica Morrell, who will be a seventh grader at McCulloch Junior High.

On the final day, campers traveled to NearSpace Education in Upland, a nonprofit with the goal of integrating space technology into classrooms. They toured the building, saw a satellite being built, and simulated creating a payload to go into space.

“They were given a budget and specs they had to follow,” Keith said. “They had to check a temperature check and a pressure check and stay within the parameters. It got to be a little competitive. It was a lot of fun to watch.”

Justice Intermediate School teacher Josiah Henson said for many students, Kids College was their first experience on a college campus.

“It enlarges their world a little bit,” he said. “It gave them a broad overview of careers they can go into, and the skills they’re going to need. I think they enjoyed the activity where they had to get a job and review their budget and see how much they can expect to make. This has been an eye-opening experience for them.”

Ignite Your Future is made possible through generous funding from the Lilly Endowment’s Indiana Youth Programs on Campus Initiative.

Education is KEY at Indiana University Kokomo.