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Summer fun comes in many forms, and this past summer at UVI was no exception. Through a variety of offerings, Virgin Islands youth had opportunity to be engaged in positive learning and skills development activities at the St. Croix and St. Thomas campuses.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
While some UVI students used the time between the Fall and Spring semesters to work or take courses that will accelerate their progression towards a degree, some Virgin Islands youngsters had their first personal experience at UVI through summer programs such as University Bound, a residential program that prepares current high school students for the expectations of college and life on campus; the Inclusive Childcare Lab and Diagnostic Center, which hosts an annual STEM\/sports summer camp on St. Thomas for children ages 6-8; and UVI\u2019s 2023 Mathematics Behind the Data Science (MBDS) Summer Program, a residential program designed to enhance the mathematics preparedness of college-bound students who are interested in pursuing careers in science, data science, mathematics, engineering, technology, or medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\nEntrepreneurship Business Institute<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nImmanuel Christian, who participated in the Entrepreneurship Business Institute Program at UVI\u2019s Orville E. Kean Campus gained valuable experience that he hopes to apply in the future. \u201cMy personal experience was great; how I got to make new friends, got to experience how it feels to be in college living with roommates and other interesting things. The lessons I learned were how to properly make a business plan. I got to meet people that have the same interest and to get the experience so maybe one day I can start my own business,\u201d he reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adding to the dynamic offerings available to the Territory\u2019s young people, UVI\u2019s School of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service offered a five-week summer program, \u201cGrowing Your Best Self \u2013 \u2018YOU, Me, \u2018All Ah We,\u2019\u201d for learners aged 10-14. Participants enjoyed gardening, hiking, art projects, career exploration, cooking, and other fun activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Reichhold Center for the Arts hosted its annual Youth Moviemaking Workshop, where students between the ages of 11 and 14 acquired the skills to produce their own videos and digital content. At the end of the intense seven-week, hands-on program, students were able to exhibit their films to the community at a \u201cRed Carpet Premiere\u201d event.<\/p>\n\n\n\nYouth Moviemaking Workshop<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nEleven-year-old Mayah Williams, who has aspirations of becoming a YouTube content creator, spent three weeks of the program working with other youngsters to create the concept, write the script, make costumes, do makeup, and act in \u201cAbout Time,\u201d a short film that captures the journey through time of four unsuspecting students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following the experience, she wants to make another movie. \u201cI enjoyed having fun, making new friends, learning how to make a movie and editing,\u201d she said, while thanking the UVI workshop leaders who helped her overcome the challenges of learning how to edit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nAnother popular summer experience is the Youth Ocean Explorers Summer Camp program. Each year campers are introduced to swimming, snorkeling, water safety, marine plant and animal identification and scuba diving at the Albert A. Sheen Campus on St. Croix as well as the Orville E. Kean Campus on St. Thomas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UVI student Maura Monee’ Richardson served as a mentor in the program this year. “YOE has profoundly shaped my journey, steering me from uncertainty to a clear path as a marine biologist and future aquatic veterinarian. Becoming a mentor has been a marvelous experience, fostering my passion for education and continuous learning. Through this program, I’ve acquired essential skills for my future in marine biology and developed a deep appreciation for the importance of the ocean’s wonders,” she shared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think it’s a fantastic and educational program for kids to learn about the sea and gain experience all while having fun, \u201d Kaiden Odlum, who participated in the on St. Croix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Expressing similar sentiments, UVI student Kadejsha Tonge stated; \u201cI have been a part of the Youth Ocean Explorer summer program for 8 years now – since I was 11 years old – and now, I am a junior in college studying marine biology. YOE has not only given me a jump start in my career, but also allowed me to discover my purpose. From work opportunities to connections with great people, I owe everything I have accomplished and will accomplish to YOE.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sparking Ambition for the Future Summer fun comes in many forms, and this pastsummer at UVI was no exception. Through a variety ofofferings, Virgin Islands youth had opportunity to beengaged in positive learning and skills developmentactivities at the St. Croix and St. Thomas campuses. While some UVI students used the time between the Falland Spring […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1423,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1422"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1422"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1422\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1500,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1422\/revisions\/1500"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.uvi.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}