How to Apply to College: Steps in the Application Process

College 101 "What college should I choose?

Choosing a college can be a difficult decision for students. It is best to start the process early, even if you are not a senior in high school. Wednesday, Teen U students had the opportunity to compile a list of universities and decide which university is a perfect fit by using a point system. If the universities had things they loved such as the student organizations, climate, offered their major, or freshman were not required to live in a dorm, then they would put the number 1 on their worksheet. If they saw things they dislike such as the universities did not offer a large number of student organizations or tuition was too expensive, then they would put a zero on their worksheet. When they finished with the worksheet, they calculated their points to see which university is right by looking at the college with the highest points.

Julian's selected school was the University of North Texas. He stated he loved the numerous student organizations and it is only 40 minutes from his mom.

La’kyra's selected school was the Oklahoma State University. She loved the school because it offered a lot of student organizations and had her major, Zoology; because she wants to become a veterinarian.

Shariah's selected school was the University of California : Davis. She found it fascinating that they give freshman the option of living in a dorm instead of requiring the freshman to live in the dorm. She also liked that it offered her major.

I have enjoyed creating College 101 workshops and encouraging students to learn about higher education at a young age is great.

--Jamacah

Public Etiquette Demonstration

My Day in Mid Teen University

So, as the teens in Teen University were going through Etiquette Class upstairs, I was sent down to unofficially assist Mr. Adam in running Mid Teen University. I have seen Mr. Terrence and Mr. Adam run this program before, but I didn't think I was going to assist in it anytime soon. No sweat...well maybe a little bit.

In attendance were two of the three young men who helped me pass out flyers earlier in the community, Niemen and Joshua. Along with them, were two others, Noel (who claimed I stole his name, his father's name, and his grandfather's name) and TJ. These guys have a lot of energy I tell you.

Well, we started of playing a board game geared towards prominent African-American figures and African-American history. I have never seen anything like it and I thought it was pretty cool to learn facts about George Washington Carver and George Washington Bush. After that, we played Brain Quest, the United States version. We learned facts about the 50 states and I was appreciative of the involvement of the young men in the program.

After sitting around with board games, they want to be more active, so we played a series of Human Knot and Categories (Joshua insisted). And I don't remember, but someone mentioned having a crab walk competition...Whew! To see them all crab walking for a time was funny and inspiring altogether. So, I volunteered to compete also...I am not old enough to complain, but it has been a while since I crab walked :) After that, we had a bear crawl competition. Even Mr. Adam participated in the activity (which also inspired me to participate). I almost broke a sweat, but it would have been well worth it for the fun of the program. Engaging them in physical activities is a great idea because young men have lots of energy and what is a better way to use it than to have them play a sport, or even bear crawl.

The kids in the program are great, as well as the staff. I am glad Mr. Terrence created this program and Mr. Adam is continuing it. I like the path MTU is going through and if they need any assistance in running the program, whether physically running or just running the program generally, I wouldn't mind. That was my first day of Mid Teen University in a nutshell.

- Dranoel

I GOT THE BLUES!

What an exciting day for Teen U students! Today, we went to the House of Blues and learned about African Americans contribution to music from the past to the present. It was very fascinating to hear the songs the slaves sang when they were being transported through the Middle Passage to America to the 1970's when Muddy Waters sang "I can't be satisfied. " The students enjoyed the experience and cannot wait until next Friday when they go back to the House of Blues to learn about folk artists.

On Wednesday, Teen U students had another college 101 workshop entitled "How to choose a major." Each student had to find a major based on their interests. For example, Sharde loves to help people so she decided to major in sociology. After they found their major, they had to look for universities with their major and pick a profession. Finally, they created a poster or PowerPoint to present their major and career choice to their peers. I enjoyed listening to their presentations and getting to know more about the students.

~~~Jamacah~~~

This week at Teen U...

It was a very busy week at Teen U!

Tuesday-- The teens had a very special guest speaker, Mrs. Sharon Grigsby, from the Dallas Morning News. Mrs. Grigsby shared how she became interested in writing and editing for Newspapers, what it took for her to get there, and many other things. Thanks Mrs. Grigsby!

Wednesday-- The UTD Go Center Interns (Jamacah and Dranoel) turned the 2101 Building into a mock University and the students attended "Freshman Orientation". During the orientation, the teens learned about all the services that are offered on college campuses. The students really enjoyed the role-playing and having many of their questions about college answered.

Thursday-- The teens took a field trip to Dallas City Hall. When we arrived, we were greeted and introduced to the City Plan Commission. We had the opportunity to attend a briefing of some of the projects the Commission would be voting on later that afternoon. After the briefing, Commissioner Mike Davis gave the teens around City Hall. They really enjoyed learning about the different careers and services offered at City Hall but their absolute FAVORITE thing about City Hall was the Mayor's Office. Thanks Commissioner!!!

University of Central Dallas: Class of 2013

This week Teen U students’ lived the life of a college student by going through a mocked freshman orientation. My co-workers and I turned 2101 building into a real university. The students went to different places in the university to learn about housing, registering for classes, meal plans, student organizations, financial aid and much more.

The students were giving handouts and instructed to act like their characters. They had to use their Id number to check into the orientation. After they checked in, they were giving a map and their own agendas to learn more about University of Central Dallas. For example, La’kyra was from Plano, Texas and majoring in Education. She had to go to the student union because she wanted to be active in a lot of organizations and did not know where to begin. Next, she went to university housing to fill out a roommate compatibility form because she had to live on campus and did not have a roommate. La’kyra and the other students loved role-playing. They were excited to learn so much about college life.

~Jamacah~

A Day At Dallas City Hall

My first day at Dallas City Hall was interesting. A major thing I learned was the name of the Mayor, which is Tom Leppert. Not only did I know his name I saw a picture of him. Whenever the mayor is out the Mayor Pro-tem, which is Dwaine Caraway, takes over. An excitng thing for me was when I we went into Dwaine Caraway's office. My favorite part about the trip was when I saw the history of the Mayors which were pictures of them.

By: LaKyra

*Dallas City Hall*

City hall: I learned so much from the trip we took to City Hall. I learned about all of the AW3SOME CAREERS that you can have there which are council members, mayors, commissioners (chair and vice chair) assistants to the mayors, etc. The field trip somewhat inspired me to become a mayor one day.. because of all of the things they get and perks, nice offices, etc.

College Workshop: I enjoyed the workshop and I also learned A LOT !!!!! I had some great volunteers set up a somewhat 'freshman orientation" that was pretty cool. I learned almost everything that I need to know about college including some things that probably most college students don't even know.



I have had a fun time ! :) by: Julian Randall

Another week, another success!

The kids are finishing the 2nd week of Teen University, and it was great. The students visited the U.S. Mint and Texas Instruments. The first presentation of College 101 was given on Wednesday by Jamacah and me. The topic was 'Myths about College', and we played a small Friday, Ms. Tameka Caldwell came by and gave a workshop on Finanacial Literacy and we all participated in 'The Game of Life'. As the 'Utilities Manager' and 'Landlord', it was interesting to see the kids go through the experience of the adult life. Paying bills, budgeting their paychecks, receiving Noise Violation tickets and whatnot. The workshop was awesome, and I hope to see more energy like that through the days of Teen University!
- Dranoel

My First Day at T.I.

One of my favorite parts about going to Texas instruments was when I went in the Theater Room. In there I saw a couple of 3-D movie previews that dealt with the D.L.P projector using 3-D glasses to watch. The D.L.P projector is actually with Texas Instruments and is really cool to use when watching a 3-D movie.

What I learned was when you take interviews for the job you want they could ask you about the experiences you have had and how would you deal with certain situations. I also learned that college teaches you how to apply and learn more on whatever you want to succeed in. Going to T.I for the first time was very interesting and cool. I enjoyed myself A LOT!

-La'Kyra

My Field Trip to Texas Instruments

One thing I learned on our field trip at TI (Texas Instruments) was that they test a little chip in our phones, our cameras, and pretty much all technology.

--Shania

Welcome to Teen U, Again! =)

Even though I have worked with Teen University for half a year, it is still exciting for me to work at Teen U for the summer. It is good to see the familiar faces participating in the program(Phantasia, Phasia, Chasity, Crystal, Sharde), as well as some new faces (Kadriana, Jorrell). And also I have co-workers who were apart of Teen U during the school year(Reisha, Shannon, Brittany). And I can't forget my new co-workers and fellow colleagues, Iman and Jamacah. The first two weeks has been great, and it's only the beginning. The teens are here, and I am ready to get it in gear!:) This is going to be an exciting summer at Roseland, I can feel it.

-Dranoel Wilson

Operation: GET HENRY A JOB

On yesterday, Teen U was ecstatic to have Ms. Hazel Davis present a job readiness workshop. She taught the teenagers about the stereotypes employers may have against them.

• Irresponsible
• Play to much
• Mean
• Lack of a strong work ethic
• Know it alls
  

Despite these stereotypes, Ms. Davis told the students that they should not get discouraged. She told them how to impress potential employers when they have little to no experience by researching the company, making good grades, having perfect attendance, and volunteering for different organizations. We had fun with group games and the TEEN U students stated they could not wait until Ms. Davis comes back to give more workshops about resumes, networking, and how to dress for interviews.

Love and it's Logic

Love and Logic

This summer has had a lot of Love and Logic.

On our first day of the program when the children arrived I thought, "Oh boy this will be a long summer." There was a particular little boy name Charles*(names have been changed) who stayed busy, would never sit down, and always kept his teachers on their toes.

I watched this little boy react and act towards certain things. I thought to myself, "He's not bad, just misguided and he needs attention." The whole day was, "Sit down, don't do that." By the end of the day I was tired and frustrated, but I refused to give up on him.

At the end of the day I told he and his mom that he would be my best friend by the end of the summer program. I saw a sparkle in eyes and he thought that was so funny and he laughed.

I assumed he laughed because no one, especially an adult, has ever told him that they would best friends. The next morning things were better and a lot calmer. He came in with an amazing smile ready to learn.

Every day has been an adventure with an awesome kid.

Water Bottle Super Heroes

We learned today about the life of a water bottle. The second and third grade class read a book that described to them the importance of recycling. The book followed the journey of a water bottle. The bottle started out as crude oil and was manufactured into a water bottle. The bottle ended up in a park where it was later picked up by a young boy. The boy took the bottle home and made into a flower vase for his mom for valentines day. When the family was finished with the water bottle they threw it into a recycle bin where it was recycled and later used to make a sweater.



In the spirit of reusing water bottles our class made water bottle super heroes. Each hero was unique and special. The children each gave their super hero a name and "special power." I was very impressed by our water bottles I think we can all feel safer about the world we live in with these super bottles looking out for us.

Our day in the garden!

Today was one of the best days working in the garden we may of ever had. We put layers upon layers of mulch and dried leaves on top of soaked newspapers. The kids took to it very well; they even got the teachers to stop hiding in the shade and get out in the sun to help. They had so much fun planting the different foods and watering them. I want to have more days like this but with more shade.

Tech Class

These are some pictures of the tech class working on making their mini videos. They seem to really like it lets hope it stays that way.