A taste of the college life
For some students, school still in session at the Summer High School Institute
While many high school students in the region have just begun their summer vacations, school was still in session for some teenagers who wanted to experience what life is like on a college campus.
Some 350 teens from around the state are participating the very first Summer High School Institute at University of the Pacific, a unique two-week learning and residential experience designed to give area high school students an immersive learning and residential college experience for two weeks on the Stockton campus.
Of those 350 students, more than 200 are enrolled at Lodi Unified School District, taking one of 13 hands-on courses including coding, competitive debate, cancer research, drug development, entrepreneurship, filmmaking, innovation, music sound and recording, sports analytics, stock investment, video game design and women’s leadership.
Institute Director Balint Sztaray, a chemistry professor at Pacific, said the two-week program is not just a summer school where students attend class for a certain number of hours and go home.
The students live on campus in the Pacific dormitories, eat in the cafeteria, explore the campus and even attend social activities such as dances and outdoor movies, or use campus facilities such as the gym and pool.
“The purpose of the program is not just about academics,” he said. “It’s to show them all the things they can expect when they attend a college. Yes, there will be classes and courses to take, but we want them to experience the social aspects of being a college
student, and how it is to be a resident in a college campus. So hopefully this will actually convince them to come to college when they are done with high school.”
Inside Pacific’s Library and Learning Center, students were participating in the “Innovating with Purpose” course, where they learned the basics of 3-D printing, virtual reality, drone piloting and animation.
Middle College High School Student Katie Huynh, McNair High School student Aleena Guirre and Bear Creek High School student Ana Gridi-Papp were having fun building a three-dimensional environment on a computer that featured two medieval kingdoms preparing for battle.
The trio designed two castles on opposite ends of a large battle field.
“We were allowed to create whatever we want,” Gridi-Papp said. “And at first it was just going to be two kingdoms. But then we saw this knight (icon on the menu) and said ‘Yeah!’”
The girls said they were allowed to pick three courses they would be interested in taking, and then institute staff decided the final selection.
“It just sounded fun,” Huynh said of selecting innovation. “It sounded cool to mess around with technology and that kind if stuff. I said, you know what, (why not?).”
All three said creating a virtual world was fun, and they might consider using the design and programing skills they’ve learned in the future, either as a career or a hobby.
“I think it’s pretty fun,” Guirre said. “It’ a very new experience from what I’m used to. And its opening my eyes to different courses and things I can take with me in the future.”
Inside Owen Hall, several students had formed music groups and were writing, producing and recording their own compositions in a variety of musical styles.
Nearly every group was made up of students from different schools, such as Karla With a K, a five-piece band working on an indie rock song.
“We got inspired to do it because (bandmate Romina Herrera) brought out her bass,” McNair student Kayden Galvez said. “We were trying stuff out and then, we started making beats with our mouths. We found this amazing beat and we fell in love with it. It sounded like a rock song, we added some electric guitar and drums, and sounded like an actual rock song.”
Galvez said he initially did not want to be in the Music Industry program when signing up for the institute, but after collaborating on a music composition with other students, he said he would not want to move to another course.
McNair student Leah Cortez, the group’s drummer, was feeling the same way when the institute began.
“It’s really nice,” she said. “I’ve learned a lot, too. I also didn’t want to be in the program. I actually picked creative media. But now, I wouldn’t choose anything else.”
The group said they enjoyed writing their own music, and department staff has provided great advice as to how to write, sing and play their respective instruments.
“(The program) teaches good stuff, and (the staff) is really helpful,” Lodi High School student Herrera said. “When we were playing (the instructor) taught me how to play a little. When we were up on the stage he was telling me how good I was. It was really nice.”
Inside Weber Hall, students were participating in the eSports program, which teaches communication and teamwork while playing games as a group, as well as providing career opportunities and advice in an up-andcoming field of industry.
Tokay High and Lodi High school students Evelyn Calderon and Caleb Thuotte were improving their skills on the games Valorant and Fortnight.
Calderon said she didn’t know a course in gaming could exist, and was thinking about becoming a streamer — where an individual broadcasts themselves playing a video game to a live online audience — in her post-education career.
“I really liked (the course),” she said. “It’s really different form anything I’ve ever done.”
Thuotte said that while he loves playing video games, he is more interested in developing and programming them as a career. He is particularly interested in creating first-person shooter games in the style of Valorant.
“I think this is a great experience,” he said. “Playing video games ... I’ve been doing it since I was little, and learning the business side of it is a great opportunity for the future.”
The Summer High School Institute concludes July 1, and Sztaray said the university will start planning next year’s session.
He said Pacific would like to attract other school districts to the program next summer, and the plan is to add more courses, including dental and pre-law.