DATE: February 27, 2008
CONTACT:
Pam Bryant, (803) 553-7705
pbryant@clemson.edu
WRITER:
Chris Copeland, (803) 397-0597
ccopela@clemson.edu
Top ninth- and 10th-graders visit Clemson to prepare for college
PICKENS – Parents from three states brought their top ninth- and 10th-grade students to the Youth Learning Institute (YLI) last weekend for an adventure-filled weekend program that introduces Clemson University.
C-CATS (Clemson’s Challenge for Academically Talented Students) celebrates its fourth season this year, successfully recruiting students from South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia who rank in the top 15 percent of their classes. The program is designed to help them think about what it takes to get accepted into selective universities. The goal is to make an impression that puts Clemson at the top of their lists.
Each year YLI sends notices to schools throughout the three states requesting referrals from guidance counselors. Referred students are invited to apply for participation in the coed weekend program. This year the program received more than 2,700 referrals, of which only 280 will be selected to fill the maximum attendance capacity of 40 students for each of the seven C-CATS weekends scheduled this spring.
High-performance academic workshops focus on test taking, memory enhancement and coherence. High-adventure group activities like a 375-foot zip line and bouldering cave teach leadership and relationship skills. In order to experience university life, participants attend events at Clemson, and top Clemson students give an in-depth campus tour. Admissions officers discuss what it takes to get into Clemson and other universities.
C-CATS participants say they have fun while learning and receiving valuable information to help them make informed choices about plans for college. Kurt Bostelaar of Batesburg-Leesville High School gave C-CATS high marks, saying it is just “too short of a weekend.”
Brad Cuttino, director for YLI, knows that C-CATS makes a lasting impression on participants and can have an impact their decision to choose Clemson. “Just recently I met a Clemson student who was familiar with the Youth Learning Institute. When I asked him how he had heard about YLI, he said he attended a C-CATS weekend a few years ago and that weekend was why he decided to attend Clemson. That made my day!”
For more information about C-CATS, contact Kristal Miller at (864) 878-1041 or kristam@clemson.edu or visit the YLI website at www.clemson.edu/yli.
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