FEA Summer Camp Held at MSU

Murray State University’s Teacher Quality Institute (TQI) held the third annual Future Educators of America (FEA) Summer Camp June 19 – 24. The FEA Camp gave rising high school seniors an experience on a university campus. The camp had students from Murray, Owensboro, Louisville, Fulton, Paducah, Wingo, Mayfield, Dawson Springs, Hickory, Marion, Symsonia, Hickman, and Madisonville. In order to be accepted to the camp, the students completed a fairly extensive application.

During the camp the students lived in a dorm, ate in the cafeteria, and visited classrooms to get a taste of college life. This year students observed Spanish, English, Math, and Music classes. The camp was designed to give the students a head-start and to help them better understand teaching as a career.

Students attending the camp participated in a variety of activities each day. In addition to visiting classrooms, the campers toured MSU campus, attended technology workshops, visited museums and the Luther F. Carson Four Rivers Center in Paducah, and prepared scrapbooks. The students learned about college life and the education field from presentations by MSU faculty. Campers were also given recreation time that allowed them to use the Student Recreation and Wellness Center, bowl at Corvette Lanes, and play tennis and miniature golf, among other things.

Digital cameras and supplies were provided for the students to prepare the scrapbooks which were judged at the end of camp. They took a field trip to the Remember When Scrapbook Store on the first full day of camp for an “Introduction to Scrapbooking” class taught by owner Rubin Adams. The campers were given time to work on the scrapbooks each day. The scrapbook competition winners were Theresa Thurston – First Place; Carrie Bradley – Second Place; Lovie Ann Anglin – Third Place; Montana Sky Burkhart – Originality; Shanna Parrish, Wesley Hughes, and Dana Kennemore – Honorable Mention.

According to W.A. Franklin, TQI Director, evaluations are used to improve camp every year. This year’s evaluations showed that 95% of the students would like to attend the camp again and 100% agreed the presenters throughout the week were inspiring.

Along with Franklin, other TQI staff helping with the camp included Shirley McKinney, Jon Brosseit, Raymond Sims, and Sue Ellen Morris. Other MSU faculty and staff that helped were Lee Kem, Meredith Hutchins, Micah Sugg, Debbie Owen, Jo Robertson, Jacqueline Hansen, Pam Matlock, David Gibson, Squire Babcock, Brad Almquist, Danny Claiborne, Susan Adams, and Jorge Trinchet.