Eleven juniors from Shortridge Magnet High School for Law and Public Policy will jumpstart their higher education careers this fall through the Early College Program (ECP) at Butler.
A key component of the University’s partnership with Indianapolis Public Schools at Shortridge, the ECP allows qualified Shortridge juniors and seniors to enroll in one 3-credit course each semester at Butler.
ECP students will come to campus Tuesdays and Thursday mornings throughout the semester, starting Aug. 25. Each will participate in a selected 100- or 200-level course.
“ECP course selections emphasize the public-speaking, problem-solving and critical thinking skills that are central to Shortridge’s college preparatory curriculum,” said Associate Provost for Student Academic Affairs Mary Macmanus Ramsbottom, who is serving as administrative liaison for the ECP.
“Butler also hopes to offer ECP options for extended study in college-level mathematics and foreign languages,” she said. “The ECP students will be fulfilling specific requirements for the Indiana High School Diploma with Academic Honors while experiencing the rigors of a college classroom and building a foundation for successful entry into a four-year degree program.”
The fall 2011 Early College Program courses and faculty include
- “Rhetoric and the American Democracy,” Instructor in Communication Janis Crawford
- “Introduction to Computers in Education,” Professor of Instructional Technology Matt Maurer
- “Introduction to Peace Studies,” Associate Professor of Political Science Siobhan M. McEvoy-Levy
- “Understanding Society: Inequalities in Society,” Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Jay Howard
- “Text and Ideas: Self and Service,” Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice Bonnie Brown and Professor of Education Arthur Hochman
“It’s wonderful to have so many of the colleges represented in these initial ECP offerings,” Ramsbottom said. “I appreciate faculty members welcoming the ECP participants into their classrooms. The ECP represents a wonderful opportunity for Butler University as a community of learners, as these students bring fresh perspectives and contributions to class discussion. The IPS/Butler Partnership seeks to change educational opportunity in ways which help to transform the Indianapolis community of which Butler and Shortridge are a part.”
All ECP students will take a 1-credit class, “Strategies for Success,” taught in the Learning Resource Center by Associate Director Emily Burke. Also offered to Butler students, the course explores techniques for developing college-level academic skills. In Spring 2012, a second course in the sequence will focus on the college application process.
Butler foundation partners, such as Lilly Endowment Inc., the Ruth Lilly Philanthropic Foundation and PNC Financial, support the partnership through tuition scholarships, faculty and staff professional development, and shared programming focused on multicultural awareness and pedagogy.
For more information on the ECP, contact Emily Burke, associate director of the Learning Resource Center, who is assisting in the ECP implementation eeburke@butler.edu, or Ramsbottom, mramsbot@butler.edu.
Media contact: Mary Ellen Stephenson
(317) 940-6944
mestephe@butler.edu
