By Sophia Harris Editor-in-Chief Framingham State University is collaborating with The Possible Zone to create a new pathway into college for local high school students. According to Raven Tukes, vice president of partnerships at The Possible Zone, the nonprofit organization “creates opportunities for economic mobility for young people across Boston.” Enrollment in the program is free for students. She said their programs are focused on entrepreneurial skill-building and STEAM competencies. “Our mission is that we want to make sure that young people are equipped to go into high-paying careers, particularly in STEAM and tech fields,” Tukes said. The initiative is a summer and after-school program that mimics the structure of an early college pathway by providing targeted, sequenced coursework, she said. The program will start Fall 2025, with plans to enroll 30 students in the first cohort. Students will be enrolled in computer science classes and prototyping classes to start. The program will last for two years, at which point, students will be able to apply to college. Tukes said the mission of the initiative is to increase college access and create a pathway that translates directly to the outcomes that high school students want for themselves. “What's special about this particular college access model is that we are actually agnostic on what post-secondary outcome we want students to take. “We've given them three options. If they want to go to a four-year institution, they have our friends at Framingham State, who we're so thankful for. If they want to go to a two-year institution, they can enroll in MassBay, or if they want to go into more of a career training program, they can go to one of our career training partners,” Tukes said. The program will take place in The Possible Zone’s 36,000-square-foot innovation center in Jamaica Plain. Tukes said the program will “provide an engaging hands-on curriculum where students come to make and explore a variety of STEAM fields.” She said courses will be taught by faculty of the Wentworth Institute of Technology. The students who will be enrolled in the program will come from Boston high schools - specifically, Dr. Albert D. Holland High School of Technology, John D. O'Bryant School of Math & Science, and The English High School, according to Tukes. Framingham State University, along with MassBay Community College and Wentworth Institute of Technology, have agreed to offer conditional college acceptance for any students who complete the program. Director of Undergraduate Admissions Shayna Eddy said she was approached by Joanna Sanborn, senior director of post-secondary pathways at The Possible Zone, over a year ago about starting this partnership. “Then a group from The Possible Zone came to FSU for a tour and a few of us from Framingham State went to their physical space and talked about various ways we could make this partnership work. Here we are a year later and we are very excited to have a plan in place to provide their students with opportunities to higher education,” Eddy said. She said The Possible Zone will engage students in “work-based learning, college and career pathway experiences, and entrepreneurship opportunities.” Framingham State will be able to assist the students as they decide to take the next step in continuing their education, Eddy said. She said FSU does not select students to participate in the program but will be working with The Possible Zone to serve the students who are in the program. She said FSU “will be working very closely with TPZ staff members to identify eligible students who will be a good fit for Framingham State. We will offer these students conditional acceptance if certain criteria are met upon graduation.” She added that as Framingham State works to continue to build these partnerships, the focus is to increase the number of applications and ultimately increase enrollment. She said the partnership “creates a support system for these students to ensure a smooth transition from high school to college, something we cannot do separately.” Regarding the application process, Eddy said, “We will review a student’s academic record and evaluate their admission ‘on the spot.’ Students still need to formally apply and other criteria are taken into consideration before a final decision is rendered.” Dean of STEM Lauren Nolfo-Clements said that STEM-specific and general professional competencies are “vital to success in the workplace, especially since technology evolves quickly and everyone must be willing and able to adapt.” She said the particular STEM fields or specializations that attract the most students at FSU are biology/pre-health and computer science. Nolfo-Clements said one of her goals as dean of STEM is to create a “pathway to introduce students to the range of fields encompassed by STEM.” She said the majority of STEM majors offer discipline-specific internships and independent research opportunities for students. Nolfo-Clements added that faculty in collaboration with the Center for Student Experience and Career Development help students not only by preparing their materials to apply for internships but also by finding internship opportunities through their professional networks and Handshake. She said some misconceptions about STEM majors are that “many people see professionals in STEM as dealing with facts and absolutes, but that is not the case. STEM is about discovery and using what is known to push the boundaries of human knowledge, innovation, and technology. It is quite creative and dynamic.” Nolfo-Clements said, “You do not need to be a ‘STEM person’ to succeed - you just need to be willing to work hard and collaborate with faculty and other students.” Junior computer science major Jairequan Hayes said what he likes most about his major is that “Most professors are willing to work with you about any deadlines or issues with assignments if you contact them.”
Freshman Xander Forward, who also majors in computer science, said his favorite part is “the hands-on approach toward the coding we're doing in my Java class.”