For immediate release
March 16, 2010 |
Contact:
Larry Slonaker, SCCOE
Phone: (408) 453-6662 |
AVID Students Learn
How Writing Boosts Success
SAN JOSE, CA – AVID students and teachers from throughout the area will
hear Stanford instructor and writer Hilton Obenzinger deliver the keynote
address at AVID's 9th Annual Writers Conference on March 23 at Stanford
University.
The students, representing 32 middle and high schools from Palo Alto to
Salinas, also will have the chance to hear from former AVID students and other
students about how skills they developed in the program helped them in college.
More than 400 AVID students and teachers will attend the conference, which
features writing workshops led by faculty and staff from Stanford and other
universities. The conference follows the participation by more than 3,700 AVID
middle and high school students in a "Write-Off," a timed writing exercise
modeled after the CSU English Placement Test essay. The write-off is designed to
heighten students' enthusiasm for writing, and to sharpen their skills for
on-demand writing and other college entrance exams.
Obenzinger, a lecturer at Stanford, writes fiction, poetry, history and
criticism. He recently published an autobiographical novel, "Busy Dying."
Welcoming remarks at the conference will be delivered by Deborah Stipek, dean of
the Stanford University School of Education.
The Region V AVID Program, which serves the conference students, includes 87
middle and high schools in Monterey, San Benito, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz
Counties. It is based at the Santa Clara County Office of Education.
AVID – Advancement Via Individual Determination – is an in-school academic
support program for grades 4-12 that prepares students for college eligibility
and success. The program places academically average students in advanced
classes aimed at preparing them for enrollment and success in 4-year colleges
and universities. A goal is to present opportunities to minority, rural,
low-income and other students who don't have a college-going tradition in their
families.
The AVID program has helped make college a reality for thousands of students
for nearly three decades. In California in 2008, 89 percent of AVID seniors had
completed four-year college entrance requirements, compared to 36 percent for
their statewide counterparts. For more information on the program, visit
www.avid.org.
Date last updated: March 16, 2010
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