Southwestern College hosted students from two different middle schools in Wichita during its annual Builder Bound Camp.  Students from Truesdell Middle School were on campus June 6-9 and students from Jardine STEM and Career Exploration Academy were on campus from June 20-23. 

Both schools were honored for their 2016-2017 achievements by the Kansas Association Middle School Administrators (KAMSA) with Truesdell awarded the Kansas Middle School of the Year and Jardine being a finalist for this distinctive award.   

A total of 112 students (75 from Truesdell and 37 from Jardine) attended the camps. Each week was concluded with a graduation ceremony in the Richardson Performing Arts Center.  Superintendent Alicia Thompson of the Wichita USD 259 attended the graduation as a parent, acknowledging her daughter’s participation in Builder Bound Camp.  

According to DeAnn Ricketts, a teacher and camp sponsor from Truesdell, students on the honor roll at Truesdell were selected first, followed by students who were close to achieving honor roll status and could benefit from the positive influences at Builder Bound Camp. Truesdell has over 1,100 students enrolled.

According to Lura Jo Atherly, the head principal at Jardine, students attending summer school for the two weeks were eligible to participate in the camp. Jardine has nearly 350 students enrolled.

This was the 11th year that Southwestern has collaborated with USD 259 to provide Builder Bound Camp.  For four years SC had partnered with Stucky Middle school thanks to a partnership developed between Dawn Pleas, vice president for retention and student success at Southwestern College, and Terrell Davis, the principal at Truesdell.  In 2012 Davis was transferred to Truesdell and contacted Pleas to see if Southwestern could provide a camp for a larger number of students.  Many of the students who attended camp are from economically disadvantaged families and would be first-generation college attenders. According to Pleas, part of the mission of this camp is to expose these students to the college experience and let them know that college is an option for them.

Campers were split into teams and participated in six courses over the four days.  Courses and professors included: biology, Rick Cowlishaw; engineering, Michael Tessmer; college athletics, Matt O’Brien; digital design, DeAnn Nelson; media/interviewing, Tommy Castor; and fishing, Mary Sites.

In addition to the classes, the students went bowling at Hillcrest Lanes in Arkansas City and attended a movie at the Cowley 8 Cinema.  Apart from these organized outings, time was built into the schedule for the campers to learn from their mentors about student success, discuss and develop a healthy image of themselves, and establish an understanding that college is attainable.

The leadership staff included Dawn Pleas, executive director; Ed Loeb, academic dean, Lonnie Boyd, controller; Anjaih Clemons, operations; Tim Miser, college student mentors; Korie Hawkins, middle school campers; Krystal Winn, climate control;  Justin Williams and LaRide Conerly, male hall directors;  Jordon Pond and Korie Hawkins, female hall directors; Rodney Marner, assistant operations; Mary Sites, orientation meals;  Garnita James, female empowerment; and Sgt. Michael Williams, male empowerment.

The camps also featured 20 current students, recent alumni, and young adult friends of Southwestern College as mentors to the campers.