A group of Camden eighth graders took a tour of Cooper University Hospital last week and caught a glimpse of what their futures could hold.
They weren't just any eighth graders. All were members of the inaugural class of Rutgers Future Scholars, a program launched by the university a year ago to help more youngsters from low-income communities graduate from college.
"How many of you are interested in careers in the health field?" medical librarian Nancy Calabretta asked the group, gathered in Cooper's Health Resource Center.
Essence High, 13, shot up a hand.
"OB-GYN!" she declared.
A year ago, she might not have been so bold.
During the 12 months of the program, shy Essence has blossomed, said her grandmother Rita High.
"Even the teachers at school have said, 'Girl, you've come a long way,' " High said. "She's coming out of her shell."
It has been a year of growth and discovery for the first class of Rutgers Future Scholars. Of the 194 students accepted into the program from Rutgers' host cities - Camden, New Brunswick, Newark, and Piscataway - only six have left. Two moved away, and four were dismissed because they did not attend the mandatory summer program.
Over 80 percent of the Future Scholars maintained a B average or higher in their core subjects, according to program officials. Their parents have become more involved in the students' academic activities, said the administrators, and the students have increased their extracurricular participation.
"We expect great things from them, and they have responded," said program director Aramis Gutierrez.
The students, in turn, have been given the chance of a lifetime - a shot at four years tuition-free at Rutgers. To qualify, they must maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average in high school, have good attendance, and take part in program activities. Along the way, they will be given guidance, mentoring, enrichment, and tutoring.
Intended as a model program, Future Scholars welcomed its second cohort of rising eighth graders this month.
In the Camden program this year, the 47 scholars visited the local Rutgers campus about once a month for workshops that touched on topics including academics, personal development, leadership, and career possibilities.
Sometimes, they just had fun, like on the trip to Piscataway to see the dynamic Rutgers women's basketball team play at the university's renowned Louis Brown Athletic Center.
"They were like, 'This is our school. One day this could be us,' " said Nyeema Watson, associate director of the Rutgers Center for Children and Childhood Studies, which hosts the Camden program. "It started clicking."
Now with the first group of scholars poised to enter freshman year of high school, program officials say they plan to stress scholastic skills so the students graduate ready for college, even from low-performing schools.
"From this point on, we need to increase our level of academic focus," said Jerri Pittsley, Camden program director.
The program is trying to impart knowledge the students' more privileged peers pick up through osmosis.
Business professor Gayle Porter recently prepped them on workplace etiquette: Have a firm handshake, no dead-fish fingers; make eye contact; dress for success.
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