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For the Fisheries Biological Science Summer Bridging Program.

The NSF TCUP KuC Summer Bridging Program runs for 7 weeks each summer and is based on the highly successful ANSEP Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program model. A typical weekday for a Bridging student begins with an 8 am Calculus prep class at the KuC Campus. The class runs until 10am and the students then report for their intern jobs.

Each job teams a student with an engineer or scientist at a local Bethel organization. We ask the companies to give the students jobs that they think the students can’t do. The sponsoring company challenges the students with projects that will take nine weeks to complete. Lunch is at noon and they are back at work at 1pm.

At 5pm the students travel back to the University residence hall where they eat and then work collaboratively on Calculus prep with peer mentors from the Pacific Alliance University Retention Program until bedtime. Weekends are dedicated to cohort building and students enjoy a joint outing; fishing, plane ride, hovercraft excursion, etc. The pace of the summer is tough, but students enjoy it and rise to the challenge year after year. Students are awarded 4 college credits upon completion of the Mathematics course.

Here is a short (7min) video about the College Bridging students on their retreat / trip to Platinum, AK.

Click image below to view.

click here to download

Although this is kinda sad, I think I had a pretty good time. Platinum was fun, even though there was no one there, but I have to say this was one of the best camps I have been too. Gifts included, it was all worth it. (ipods are awesome!) Its been tough, math and rule wise…. sleeping at the dorm, curfew early in the night, and things like that is hard, but it pays off. I am headed back to school in about three weeks, this is my last semester, and I will be off to college next fall. I plan on working after Christmas break so I won’t be too broke for college. and I am sad that I have to leave Ingie, and Esther… my two very good friends now… the boys…. hmmm… I guess I’ll miss em to… working with Kyle, and dealing with James, it was okay. I will miss them. Well, I had fun. I will see u guyz around. peace.

Shanna

Finally this camp is over only one more test and the final exam then I get to head off to anchorage for a couple of weeks while trying to slim down for wrestling. The camp here is extremely time consuming and it’s hard to get a full workout schedule in when u have to work and attend classes and tutoring.

Besides all the hassles the summer has been productive I landed a 44,000 dollar scholarship to Menlo college and plan to major in general business management and engineering if I can.

Everyone at the camp seems very happy to leave but I think everyone will miss each other a lil bit since we’ve been together for so long. I enjoyed hanging out with Shane and Martin while we were in Platinum for the weekend and I managed to fit some cross training in while I was there, still gotta cut a few more pounds though- darn…..

kyle satter

The end of the Summer Bridging Program this summer is almost over and I am kind of happy to say that I lived through this experience! We just recently returned from our trip to Platinum, Alaska just yesterday, Sunday the 23rd of July. We spent a week down there and it was fun. Shane was our great cook and he always had meals prepared for us when we wanted to eat. the thing I turned out to like was all the “Cowboy Coffee” that we were drinking. We had class just about every day while we were down there. along with a group activity every other day or so. Saturday we kayaked just about 12 or 13 miles to Goodnews Bay, Alaska. It was along, tiring, but fun kayaking experience. gladly we didn’t have to kayak back. We also hiked up Red Mountain the second day we were down there I believe. I kind of missed work while I was down there, but it was a nice ‘vacation’ as we called it. We fished just about every night we spent down there. We caught a few the first few nights but we had rotten luck for the last three nights I think. that kind of sucked. but it was alright. can’t catch all the time, haha. Just getting back to work my boss Joseph Shawler has moved me to work with Telco, working with the telephone system here at YK. learned a few things already, which is good for my first day. but I still check out the guys here in Networking, trying to find out if I can help them in any way. Now with the Pre-Calc class, I am passing it, THANK GOD!! We take the final exam in a few days. now I hope I do good on that. This is the last week we spend for this camp. it was a nice experience and I am glad I got the opportunity to attend it. To those who think of applying for it, I say go right on ahead. it’s one of the great things that can happen. I mean 4 free college credits if you pass as well as some money from the internships you work at. can’t get it better than that! Me and the guys attending this camp are getting closer than ever. we talk a lot and make jokes with each other. a lot better than we did at the start of this camp. Just a few more days and I get to go home! but I am stuck with a choice to keep on working or spend the rest of my summer at home. Kind of a hard choice but I’ll figure something out by the end of this week. This just might be the last summer camp I attend for a while. two summers in a row is kind of a lot but I am glad to be spending it learning something that will help me with my future plans. This might be good for now. might write another blog by the end of this week. Hope you had fun reading my entries.

James Joekay Jr.

Week 5 is coming to an end here at YKHC Technology Department. Work has been going good. the days may go slow since most of the networking crew is out doing Voice Over IP, or VOIP. our boss Dan Maples told me he wants to talk more on sending me on at least one trip by the end of the program a while ago. Hopefully i get to go on one of them trips. just a little over two weeks and it’s off to Napaskiak for me, get to sleep on my big comfortable bed and not worry about waking up around 7 in the morning for class. With the guys here at work, they’ve been giving me some good advice on which colleges offer some great classes if i am to be taking the course of Technology.. They’ve been telling me that this college is better than this, which i’ve now heard for the third time. but it’s all good. lately i haven’t been going on many calls but i have been asking questions regarding education on technology. All in all, work is going great!

Now this coming saturday, we are heading off to Platinum, Alaska. it is just part of the program where we will be leaving as a group and do some activities and still have the pre-calc class. with the pre-calc class.. we took a test this morning and i am hoping that i passed it. learning the sines and cosines and such were kind of ocnfusing. but i’m glad that the tests are open book tests. with the homework, i kind of fell behind but than worked hard to catch up. now i am all caught up, i think. with the last grade report, i was passing, and i think i am still passing the class. just about two weeks till finals and i am hoping i do good. Now with the tutoring, we moved the sessions from the Annex to the LAC room on campus. kind of bummed out cause i got used to the Annex, but it’s alright. Sometimes we have disagreements with the tutors but it shows some progress.

This week should be about the time that they give us our ipods. hopefully they give them out by tomorrow evening so we can get music put onto them. Now during the freetimes, i’ve been finding time to go play some basketball and just recently went off and played football. it’s lots of fun and i am meeting more and more new people. This camp is starting to be loads of fun and kind of am somewhat disappointed that it is almost over, but i am sooo looking forward to going home in two weeks.

this should be it for me. now after this program i am still debating if i should continue with work or just kick back and relax. should take me  a while to figure that out. have a great summer!

James Joekay Jr.

Hey, its me again, Ingie. Week 5 is almost over. Today is Thursday and im at work. i just quickly writing a blog while im imaging a one of the yk computers. this process is very long. but if you have a fast connection it wont take as long as the older PC’s…….this week was like anyother week…except i didnt get to go fishcamp…this week i didnt have much time to go fishcamp…so thats what i missed out on this week…but of course i didnt miss out on math and technology……today in school we had a exam for the chapter that we just finished up. i think i did pretty good…(hopefully)….finally were almost gonna take the finals in two weeks…then right after we take the finals the camp will be over and im gonna get out of here….not exactly. im still thinkning of staying here in bethel and work for YK Technology until school starts so that i can have some spending money before school starts…i really like my job….i enjoy answering the phones and helping the other yk employeese in anyway that i can…….so work and school is doing so great….

Today i think were gonna get iPods….our program facilatator Shane said that we should be getting them before we leave to Platinum…so i cant wait to get the iPods…..

yeah on Saturday morning were taking off to Platinum to do some outdoor things and have a break from Bethel..or atleast that is was they call it….also we well be taking some science and still be taking math because our instroctor is coming along with us…so im excited that im gonna go……well thats what gonna happen and this is what already happened….i’ll keep you people updated….

ingie

Tomorrow is Friday, July 7th and i get paid as my supervisor Joe Shawler tells me!! This 4th weeks has gone by kind of slow but than i take it as how college can go at times. work has been great, getting to leanr more about the applications and the place where they hold all the information for all the computer settings. Just three more weeks i belive and i can get to go home and sleep on my own bed!! i gotta find out if i would be able to work after this program is over so i can make plans for myself. I am liking working with the Networking team. Each one has given me work to do and i learned from just about everyone of them. Hopefully after having a meeting with Shane and Dr. Brown, i would be able to go on at least one of the Village travels done by the YK team. Next week sounds like a good time to do so. As for the Pre-Calculus class, it is kind of getting more complicated but i am managing to handle all the new information i have been getting. the last test was kind of hard on me but i somehow think that i passed the test, I HOPE! just one more week and i get a free I-Pod if i keep up my good work. the grade report said that i was passing the class with a B, if i had taken the chance to re-work the test last week, i was told it could have been an A. but it’s alright. the funny thing right now is that i mistakenly get one of the kids’ emails from his parents.. that’s kind of awkward.. to whoever wrote those messages, sorry that you got the wrong address, but i believe those messages are meant for someone on the Summer Science trip that should be coming in tomorrow..

This is the second summer i spend away from home and i am missing a lot of things. this weekend i wanna be at home for as long as possible. After this camp, i might be making plans for myself to go out to another villlage, but i am not so sure right now. this should be good for my 4th week input. hope all goes well with my class and my work.

James Joekay Jr.

hey this is Ingie again…and im gonna tell you about my college life so far….man it scares me to even think about college life..because im kinda living it now…with school and working to have money….with school we havent had class in 4th of July and Thursday because our instructor, Dr. Bob Brown had to go into Anchorage for meetings..but he will be back today….so this week has been pretty easy with two free days….but that doenst mean i dont work…except on the 4th….but today i came it and started answering phones…i really enjoy ansering the phones..it makes me feel good being able to help the yk employese…..but i feel bad when i dont have answers to give them..but still im learning to do that…so work is going great. i really enjoy working here.. Somedays could be boring…without hardly anyone calling….which means we can sit and relax waiting for the phone to ring…

Man..the days are going by fast…its already 3 more weeks till the camp ends…it makes me feel good because i lasted 4 weeks..and i have a great goal…is to finish this program…and that would motivate me to finish college because i was able to finish this boot camp….well..thats the update for this week…so i’ll give more info. next week…

oh yeah my 4th of July was GREAT!….

Ingie C.

hey its me…im just writing a blog to tell you how im doing…

With class im doing pretty good….but were in the middle of trying to find a new tutorer to teach us….so i hope we get on ASAP….but i wish we didnt have so much math a day…but its ok…i need it to help my math skills…With work at YKHC..im starting to learn alot more with working on computers…they have a really good team…this past week we had to answer phones at the help desk because they were short on help desk workers…so that was fun too…i liked answering the phones…

Man im so homesick…i wish i was able to go back home…but this program is a good starter for college life..and im glad that i was able to get in…

well thats all i have for today…so i’ll stop here…later!

Ingie C.

By Shane Iverson

After three weeks of camp I am pleased overall with how the program has progressed and more importantly I am pleased with the students job performance and work ethic.

After meeting with their supervisors I have heard favorable ratings. The only things left to hammer out were certain tendancies that any young worker must adjust to when beginning in a professional work environment. Things such as clothing, posturing, and how to spend free momments (hint: solitaire does not impress supervisors).

They have had perfect attendance in class, and they manage to keep both eyes open. I know they have been shocked by the amount of work one college course deals out, but they are adjusting. I think some have to work a little harder than others, but that is natural. If they keep working together they will all pass with C’s (OR BETTER!) and an iPod.

My main concern is that 3 of the 5 have had serious curfew violations. I hope they can go the rest of the program without another, because a second violation is trouble and a third is grounds for expulsion.

Also they need to pay attention to little details. As soon as they perfect their ability to follow my directions, increased benefits will start to roll in.

Our largest problem is the tutoring component, which has not been strong, or consistent. While this may be hindering them in their current classes it will show them that they are ultimately responsible for their own learning. Also, if they manage to come together as a team they can overcome this obstacle on their own… and pass the class, and get an iPod.

TWO WEEKS TILL PLATINUM!

hey, its going good… i am enjoying my job. i like working with the people i do, cause they are very entertaining. especially kyle. he likes to pick on the people… sometimes he makes me laugh so hard that i cry…. lol. but i really miss my brother! :’( hes out at nunivak island right now till the 7th of July…. i am really sad. and i miss all the other people that went to…. james j., eddie c., nels s., and all my “lil home-fries”… lol. but yes i am enjoying this camp… hard math… i fell behind cause i was really sick one night, and i didnt sleep good so slept during study hall…. bad idea. i am sad that i didnt do my homework because now i have to worry about it. i cant wait till next week, hope the weathers good so we can go out and actually work. its starting to get hard getting up early and everything, but i am gonna finish, and pass…. if i say i can, then i can. but yeah…. thats the update. update more next week.

Shanna:D

Hey..this is the third week of this ANSEP program and there is four more week of work work work…and more work….right now i think im doing pretty good so far…the math is going alright but were still in the middle of finding a new tutor because the one we have isnt a good one…working at technology is going great..this past week we had to answer phones at the help desk..sometimes i didnt know how to help the workers so i would just transfer them to a person that would be able to help them…but just trying to do my job the best way that i can…

My supervisor wants me, Jofina, and James to try go on some village travles next week so we could get a closer look at how they work with village technology…i hope we are able to travel….

Man..im so so homesick..i wish that i was able to go home..but i know this place is a really good starter for college life…so im going to try and stick with it…i need this kind of pressure to get ready for college…plus this puts me in a great spot to get into college….well this is all i have for now…later!

Ingie C.

Only another 4 weeks and then were done and everyone will be on their own way twards new goals and dreams. we are currently trying to complete one right now buy passing are tests and finishing homework. chapters 4 and 5 are difficult to understand and the homework is never ending i just hope i keep up with it.

the internship at the port is going smoothly and were just waiting for some good weather to come in then we can finish up with the surveying around the seawall, dock and harbor. nothing else really is happing besides a few barges loading and unloading on the port. nothing very interesting to tell anyone.

the saterday activitys are getting a lil boring and i wish we had more free time instead of always having to come back at odd hours in the day. thats the main thing that bugs me about the camp.

im still excited to wrestle in california and meets my new teammates. thats what is keeping me going and helping me complete my workload and finish this bridging program.

Going into the end of the third week and i have been working for a little over a week now here at YK Tech. So far i have learned a lot about the system they use and how to use some of the important applications. At first i was set with the Help Desk and a while later i got moved into the Networking group. With the Networking group, I started more hands-on activites. the thing i had fun doing is making connection cables this week. Hopefully after Joe Shawler, our supervisor, talks with Shane we can be able to go on at least one or two village travels to see how they work the telemedicine and voice over IP-ing. that sounds like fun. with the rest of the program, it is going a little better than before. getting used to waking up early in the morning and starting to understand more about the Pre-Calc class. three weeks down and about 4 more to go. sounds like a lot but i believe i can live through it. Networking is pretty fun and i like working with the whole staff list. CAN’T WAIT TO GET PAID NEXT FRIDAY, JULY 7!!!! haha.. well, best get back to work here.. later

JR

This summer i choose to participate in the calculus boot camp to help build a soild foundation for my freshman year in college. It has proven to be a wise choice and i’m glad that i went along with the program.

With two weeks gone and another five to go i feel confident that everyone can pass the class, as long as we all put out a solid effort. So far everyone has done just that and more, we study everyday in the morning and go to work for our internships right after class. Then we have tutering with college students who hope to start a career in teaching. that is a days work and we do it everyday except when we have a group activity on Saturday.

I’m already getting ready for the camp to end since i can still spend some time at the beach in California where my new college is located. Its just outside of San Francisco 30 minutes out of town. It’s not all going to be fun and games cause i will be wrestling in one of the hardest weight class devisions. the 133 lbs. class is what i feel comfortable at and is 3 pounds heavier then my high school weight devision.

Kyle

I have never left college, in a matter of speaking. After earning a Bachelors Degree in History and Spanish I took a job at a small university in Rural Alaska, The Kuskokwim Campus. That was almost four years ago. In that time I have seen some friends and students graduate college and move onto fun and exciting careers, and I have seen others drop or flunk out. From others, and from myself I have learned what it takes to be successful. Some of those things I believe, I can pass on to others who are willing to learn.

For a student to be willing and able to learn from me they must possess the following characteristics: desire, drive, aptitude, willingness, courage, self-confidence and vision. If a high school student does not already posses these qualities there is little I can do to help them.

Then there are the skills that must be refined, skills I hope I can help students develop: 1) Self-discipline: Understanding that each and every one of your actions effects your ability to reach long term goals and is therefore essential to earning a four year degree. Without the ability to regulate yourself, even the smartest students will not succeed in college

2)Tenacity: College is hard work, filled with trying times. It is the student that can push through the hardest of situation that will make it to graduation. Those that give up when the going gets rough, will not.

3) Communication: Communication must run 2 ways, or it is not communication. By communicating with instructors students are more likely to understand course content, and their instructors expectations, both keys to success. Also they can gain letters of recommendation from those instructors they know. IT’S NOT JUST WHAT YOU KNOW, BUT WHO YOU KNOW. Also by communicating with other students you can strengthen your study time.

4) Vision: My students already know they want to be successful, but by the time they leave this bridging program I hope they can see exactly what they need to be successful and how they should go about doing it.

5) Study Skills: The work load that students are expected to undertake at college can be shocking! I hope to show students to PADDLE. Stay on top of your homework and the stress will be less. Keep moving forward and before you know it you will get where you are going.

I am part of the ANSEP program because it gives me a chance to pass this knowledge onto others younger than me so that they may be as fortunate as I to possess a college degree and world full opportunity and freedom that comes with it.

Shane

Hey, this is a pretty tough course, but its fun… at least I have a job and getting college credits…. pre calc is extremely tough, but with the RIGHT help *hint hint*, your able to get through it.

well, we’re suppose to answer some questions that Shane, our student facilitaor, told us to answer, so here I go.

Why am I here?

• Future goals?
• College goals?
• Family/ Community?
• Career Choices

My future goals are to become an accountant and/or computer tech software (or possibly hardware. haven’t decided yet). I really would like to become someone who deals with computer tech because I like computers and they are fun to play with… most times anyway.

College goal wise. this has helped me prepare for college because the way that college is taught is completely frustrating. They move with an extremely fast ciriculum. it tough, and you have other students that may help you. its totally up to you and yourself to get things done. its not hard to ask for help, but you have to understand that YOU HAVE TO ASK in order to get help.

Even though I live in Bethel, its actually very homesickening to live in dorms. I thought I would be use to dorm life cause I do go to a boarding school, but no….. I was totally off. I am really homesick, but my mom helps me get through everything… my days, my problems, just life in general. My mom just wants to see me succeed and if I need help, feeling down, or just have a problem, she’s there to help.

My job…. my jobs got some pretty funny people. they are always in a good mood. they seem like they enjoy their job…. most the times anyway. its fun to watch people do what they have to do. oh, sorry…. i forgot. you dont know where I work…. i work for the city of Bethel, at the port or public works. haven’t done anything with public works yet, but I am looking forward to it.

But yeah, this is going to be my second week here at ANSEP, and its going pretty well… thats all I have to write for now though…. u can katchup with me later…

Shanna

hey its me Ingie again…I’m going to be a junior at Kwigillingok High school….Today, that question just came to me….I dont really know why I’m here…all i wanted to do is get college credits and get spending money over the summer…i didn’t really want to come here because i knew i would get homesick…but i had no choice and just came…this program is really going to help me get into college easy instead of having to so much work with people that don’t really get themselves ready for college…then they have a hard time their first year of college….well i guess i’m here getting myself ready college. i know college is hard and i wanted a headstart.

This is me working on a computer at YKHC Technology. It was pretty cool.

My future goals are to go college and get a degree in either nursing or technology.so i can have a high paying job helping out in my homelands.(YK Delta) i’ve always wanted to be a nurse, but since i started this ANSEP program, i got an intership at YKHC in technology and i found that pretty interesting. so right now i’m undecided. but still, i’m going to go to college right after high school.

My mom is a really big cheerlearder for me…she was the one that made me go to this ANSEP program…she pushes me so hard that i’m one of top students at Kwig. High School. she didn’t get her degree yet, thats why shes always telling me that i have to go college and get it..she doesnt want me to do the same mistake she did. which is get serious with the boyfriend and have kids and get married.. so i want to thank my mom for being there supporting me in this program.

Ingie

So far for my experience it was kind of hard. the Pre-Calc class is kind of frustrating but than I somehow manage to get the work done and do good on the homework. The first test we all passed and there was a drawing for a free I-Pod, which Jofina ended up winning.. there will be more of those happening though. for the Internship, I was waiting on UUI to start my job, but since i was waiting since the first week, i finally went over to YKHC Technology Dept. and accepted the pervious offers to start working for them. So I started working and am liking it so far. But i still wonder how it would have been if i stuck with UUI. With the rest of the scheduling of the camp, it is going somewhat smoothly. I guess this is it for my input so far. HOPEFULLY, i last through all 5 weeks left of this camp.

James