Talented High School Students Find The Summer A Time For Artistic Learning
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - Twelve talented students from two high schools in New York City came to live and learn during two weeks of July in the Berkshires as a part of the Urban Scholars program at Williams College.From Pelham Preparatory Academy in Bronx, N.Y., were students Shia-Nia Alston, Shenelle Hendricks, Daniele Henry, Bianca Morgan, Cecil Papafio, and Jazmine Rodriguez.
From Richard R. Green High School for Teaching in Manhattan, N.Y., were students Sasha Monegro, Victoria Ellerbe, Melissa Gutierrez, Shabel Castro, Raquel Rosas, and Angel Luis Nieves.
Under the tutelage of Gail Newman, chair of the Program in Comparative Literature and professor of German at Williams, and Deborah Brothers, lecturer and costume designer in the Theatre Department, these students took intensive, college-level courses in theater, literature, and art.
Newman introduced students to contemporary short stories by Edwidge Danticat, Laila Lalami, and Junot Diaz with a focus on immigration and identity. The course focused on both critical reading and analytical writing.
Deborah Brothers, lecturer in theater and a costume designer for the theater department, taught a course on the intricacies of designing Othello, a play which she selected from the repertoire of Shakespeare and Co. in Lenox, Mass.
Jeannot Barr, a French teacher at Garden City High School as well as a professional art dealer, created a course that wove together self-expression assignments and engagement with the works on display at the Williams College Museum of Art and the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute.
Newman was impressed with how well the students did with the intense workload. "After hard work through several drafts, some of the academic papers for my class could definitely hold their own in a group of Williams first-years," she said. "The modernized scenes from Othello were brilliantly written and acted; and the photography projects were poignant and often stunningly rendered."
She said that the program invited more students from this group than ever to consider applying to Williams. "We hope to see some of them join the Class of 2014," she said.
Outside of their rigorous and creative coursework, students explored the outdoors of the Berkshire Hills and ended their summer program with a student talent show featuring dance, step, singing, and art. Students also took a trip to get a behind-the-scenes tour and performance of Othello at Shakespeare and Co. John Douglas Thompson, the actor who portrayed Othello, met with students and was so impressed with them that he volunteered to come up from New York to work with the program next summer.
