Communications

Summer Academics is thriving in the Office of Undergraduate Studies

July 2022

“This group is full of spark and big personalities!” said Tony Delgado, assistant dean, Academic Inclusion with the Office of Undergraduate Studies (UGS) who is leading the newest summer pilot program, called New Bulls Scholars (NBS). This trial program is one of several summer programs offered by UGS departments that focuses on academic college preparation.

The NBS is hosting 18 First-Time in College (FTIC) students who have recently graduated from high schools and are admitted for Summer B. The purpose of the program is to develop students as adult learners and leaders, foster a growth mindset for personal, academic, and career development, and provide opportunities for campus and community engagement. Students invited to the program are primarily first-generation college students, Pell grant eligible, or students who attended a USF Guaranteed Admissions Pathway Program Partner high school.

Another of our programs for FTIC students. The Summer Academic and Cultural Engagement Program (ACE) primarily serves FTIC students from 34 states and Puerto Rico who have been accepted for the summer session. Soon they will move in and attend a two-day First-Year Orientation. The program will kick off with CampACE, a team-building and tradition-building event for 214 students to get to know their mentors and peers. Summer ACE students begin their alternative calendar classes on July 11th, where they will also be participating in Community-Engaged Learning. Some of the community partners include Feeding Tampa Bay, Habitat for Humanity, Tampa Museum of Art, Linwood Community Gardens, and others. This program is designed to assist these students with their transition to college and a new community. They receive extra assistance with the onboarding process, individualized courses, collaborative learning and experiences, one-on-one mentoring with peer mentors, and general support to enhance a smooth transition to the university.

Undergraduate Studies has two pre-college programs that also offer summer programming with the goal of preparing middle and high school students for the next year of high school and beyond.  The Upward Bound Program is a federally funded program that received additional funding this year to expand its summer residential program from 3 to 4 weeks where 11th and 12th graders live in the University of South Florida Residence Halls. The program will end with two weeks of non-residential programming.

These 100 students have five hours of core classes every day including English, Math, Science, Foreign Language, Science, Literature, and History. These are taught by teachers from Hillsborough County High Schools. They finish out their day with a couple of hours of physical team-building activities and evenings with self-development activities. Upward Bound program recently celebrated its 55th year at the University of South Florida and was of the original programs in the United States.

The other UGS pre-college program is the College Reach-Out Program (CROP) which is state-funded and serves middle and high schoolers from local schools. The students follow a similar academic schedule as the Upward Bound students and have the extended day residential program for one week instead of four.