Overview:

Sponsored by the Program for Advancement of Learning (PAL) at Curry College, the College Search East is an innovative, interactive opportunity for rising seniors to:

• Identify a personal learning profile and set realistic goals
• Understand the legal, academic, and social transition from high school to higher education
• Visit and compare Boston area colleges and their programs/accommodation services
• Create an individualized plan for navigating the college search with a "road map for senior year," including tools to compose a solid college application essay
• Experience two weeks in residence on the Curry College campus for an authentic preview of college life
• Participate in cultural, historic, and social activities to gain awareness of the opportunities available in Boston

Highlights:

College Search East is more than classroom activities. It is the opportunity to experience the college residential environment:

• Get to know others from all over the United States in informal and planned activities designed to foster social interaction and cultural opportunities.
• Experience all that Boston has to offer in a tour of the city and the chance to attend a theater production.
• Get a jump start on your college application essay.
• Visit a number of area colleges to begin the search for the "right fit."

Benefits:

• Opportunity to work in a small group with experienced learning specialists.
• Social interaction with other students with learning differences.
• Students earn 1.5 Curry College credits for completion of academic requirements.
  

All activities will be supervised by residential life staff.

PAL 1180H - Summer PAL Hybrid  (3 credits)

PAL 1180H is the online/hybrid version of PAL 1180 - Summer PAL and is an intensive learning experience for entering first year students or transfer students who have been accepted into the Program for Advancement of Learning (PAL). Through this immersion style course, students have the opportunity to develop an understanding of themselves as learners within the context of higher education. This understanding is based in PAL’s core learning outcomes: metacognition, self-regulation, active and engaged learn-ing, critical thinking and reasoning skills.

Working with a PAL faculty mentor and a small group of peers, students will construct strength based strategies for written communication, reading, listening, note-taking, critical thinking, problem-solving, personal goal setting, organization and team-work. Activities include: developing an individual learning profile, experimenting with assistive technologies, and experiencing the rich learning resources of the Curry College community. Student learning culminates with a learning portfolio. Student learning occurs in-person and through web-based platforms.

Some preliminary assessment tasks, requiring about 2- 3 hours to complete, will take place online during June or July. Students will need to set aside time each day to complete online assignments. This is an excellent opportunity to earn 3 college credits with the possibility of taking a lighter course load in the fall, as a way to gradually enter into the overall academic and social college experience.

2019 College Search East Session Dates:

TBD July 2019

Please check back later during the 2018-2019 academic year for Summer 2019 dates.

Transportation

Students who fly into Logan Airport will be asked to arrange arrival and departure times so that residence life staff can meet them as a group for transport to Curry College. Please note that if flights are delayed or canceled, a back-up plan should be in place. Further details will be forthcoming upon acceptance to the program.

Requirements for Admission:

• Provide evidence of entering your senior year in high school as of September 2019
• Provide documentation of a language-based learning disability, attention deficit disorder, and/or executive function weakness
• Demonstrate average to gifted cognitive ability as measured by the WAIS/WISC or other psycho-educational testing
• Provide testing which describes your learning profile (including WAIS/WISC and Achievement tests such as the Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement)

Please note that PAL is NOT designed for students whose overall cognitive ability is in the low average range or below, who demonstrate a significant need for social skills support or remediation, or who have a primary diagnosis of a disability other than a language-based learning disability and/or AD/HD.

How to Apply:

• COMPLETE AND SUBMIT AN APPLICATION ONLINE (by June 1)
• COMPLETE AND SUBMIT A LEARNING PROFILE QUESTIONNAIRE ONLINE
• Provide a letter of recommendation from your guidance counselor, teacher, or learning specialist. Your guidance counselor, teacher, or learning specialist can COMPLETE AND SUBMIT THE LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION ONLINE
• Please note: Acceptance and participation in College Search East is not a guarantee of acceptance to Curry College and PAL.
• Please include student's name in the subject line when sending testing or other documents as email attachments so it gets to the correct office.

Tuition and Residence Fee:

• $3,295 (for Summer 2018)
  

Payment and Refund Policy:

• Non-refundable deposit of $100 upon acceptance.
• Full payment preferred deadline is June 9.
• No refunds after June 12 unless a medical excuse is provided by physician.
• No refunds if student is asked to leave for infractions of drug, alcohol, and/or curfew violations or disruptive behavior.

Residence Life Staff

CSE Residence Life is modeled after the typical undergraduate residence life experience. Students will be supervised by a Resident Director and Resident Assistants (one per 10 students). Resident assistants are undergraduate college students themselves who are chosen based on maturity and recommendations.

Residence Hall

Students will be housed in one of Curry's smaller residence halls. Rooms are standard doubles, so students will be assigned roommates. Three meals a day will be provided in the College dining marketplace. Any additional meals or snacks will be at the student's expense.

Rules and Policies

Students will have enforced curfews and are expected to be in their own rooms between midnight and 7:00 a.m. Students may not leave campus unless on supervised and approved College Search East activities. A strict drug and alcohol policy will be enforced. Upon acceptance to the program, students and parents will be expected to sign a form acknowledging that they have read and agree to the residential policies.

Important Note to Parents

Safety of your son or daughter is of utmost concern to us; however, personal safety is a joint venture. No system can guarantee protection without full cooperation of and assumption of responsibility by your son or daughter. Consequently, we ask that you carefully evaluate your son's or daughter's maturity level before encouraging participation in a residential program.