Academic enrichment for talented, low-income students from Princeton and nearby towns.
By: Alyson Zureick
"Who wants more homework?"
Princeton sociology professor Miguel Centeno is met with laughs and groans from the group of high school sophomores in front of him. Dr. Centeno laughs, too, then bounds around the room, asking the students about their weekend and cracking jokes as the remaining students arrive for an early class at the Princeton University Preparatory Program, or PUPP.
A three-year academic enrichment program aimed at recruiting talented, low-income students from Princeton, Trenton and Ewing high schools and preparing them for admission to selective colleges, PUPP is in its third summer and, based on the energy in Dr. Centeno’s class, it seems to be going stronger than ever.
Students take their seats and in a matter of minutes Dr. Centeno steers the light-hearted conversation into an intense discussion on the sociology of race, class and gender in American society. Voices are raised; a few students lean forward in their chairs; others raise their hands impatiently, showing both frustration and engagement.
One thing is clear: This program is not for the faint of heart.
Founded in the summer of 2000 by Dr. Centeno and John Webb, the director of the teacher preparation program at the university, the PUPP summer institute, which runs from July 7 through Aug. 15, has grown tremendously over the past three years. The institute began with a group of 23 rising sophomores in the summer of 2001, and this summer, it has finally reached its full capacity with 61 rising sophomores, juniors and seniors.
Having all three classes together for the first time signals PUPP’s growing maturity.
"As this program has grown, I’ve seen an increased intensity in the academic challenges the program presents to the students," said Richard Carter, PUPP administrator and a teacher preparation program administrator. "I’ve seen an increased ownership as the students consider their roles within PUPP. I’ve also seen how much the students themselves have shaped the program and contributed to its growth since the first summer."
Each year, freshmen identified by their schools as academically talented are invited to apply to PUPP. They then complete a timed essay test and an application. Additionally, family income cannot exceed $51,000 the median in New Jersey Dr. Centeno said.
"The original concept of PUPP was born of realizing that the admissions game was so competitive that for someone who was not from an ‘advantaged’ background, money would be a minimal issue compared to their not being prepared to manage this game," he said. "These students just can’t get into competitive colleges without the wherewithal to manage the process."
With the original group of students entering their senior year, PUPP has reinforced its goal to provide them with just that the wherewithal for all 22 of them to gain admission to the college of their choice and succeed in college and beyond.
Seniors visit several colleges throughout the summer including Columbia, New York University and Georgetown University, and attend college preparatory workshops with Jim Moyer, a university graduate student.
Mr. Moyer also will follow up with the students in the fall to continue guiding them through the college admissions process.
Next spring, as admissions letters arrive at the students’ homes, the students are not the only ones who will be at a crossroads. PUPP, too, will finally have a concrete measure of its accomplishments, allowing the faculty to identify what is right with the program and what still needs work.
If all the seniors succeed in getting accepted to a college of their choice, PUPP may begin to consider the possibility of eventually expanding into a "Princeton academy" that could serve as a model for similar programs at other colleges and universities, Dr. Centeno said.
"PUPP is really providing these students with an intellectual culture that is valuable because it is something they may not have gravitated to or even found at their own high schools," Mr. Moyer said.
"With this culture, we’re really showing them that college is about debate, conflict and radical, daring ideas. The level of student commitment shows that they have really bought into this culture," he added.
Indeed, it seems that these students have bought into it. They talk animatedly about their work, their PUPP friends and their goals. They are motivated and optimistic.
"A lot of the things here, like our sociology class, are things that I want to do, things that you don’t get to do in high school," said Jamie Sparano, a rising senior at Ewing High School who hopes to study politics at a school in Washington, D.C. "I don’t know where I would be without PUPP."
Rising sophomores Ryan Sanders, Johnson Cheng and Avery Hokley also express enthusiasm about the opportunities available to them through PUPP. Over the course of their three years in the program they and their fellow students will benefit from trips to places like the United Nations, collaboration with the Princeton Art Museum, tutoring and mentoring from university graduate and undergraduate students during the school year and access to university resources like lectures and theater productions.
Yet, despite the wealth of resources PUPP provides, PUPP exists first and foremost because of the quality of the students, Mr. Carter said.
"PUPP is an incredible testimony to the power of students and what happens when they’re provided with opportunity to grow," he said. "The students are the ones who really drive the program."