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By Rebecca Rider

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Published 11:58 pm Tuesday, December 5, 2017

SALISBURY — More than 5,000 students have benefited from the Rowan County Crosby Scholars program since its founding in 2013. Nearly half of them enrolled at the beginning of the 2016-17 school year, officials said.

But whether they’re new or one of the nonprofit group’s 360 graduates, students have found a haven and a future.

“We know the program as Crosby Scholars,” Paul Fisher said Tuesday morning. “Our young people know the program by a four-letter word: hope.”

Fisher and other Crosby Scholars supporters, as well as community partners, gathered Tuesday morning for a fundraising breakfast at City Tavern.

The benefit celebrated the program’s success and sought to raise money to cover the Crosby Scholars board’s goal to provide $75,000 in Last Dollar Grants annually for four consecutive years — a total of $300,000.

Last Dollar Grants cover unmet financial need for college-bound Crosby graduates. Qualifying students can receive as much as $1,000 a year for each school year. In the past two years alone, Executive Director Jennifer Canipe said, the program has awarded more than $147,000 in Last Dollar Grants.

Traditionally, the money is raised through Crosby Scholars’ annual Barbecue, Bands and Boots fundraiser. But at the beginning of 2017, Canipe said, the program started a capital campaign for Last Dollar Grants. The goal is to make the grants sustainable for the long term.

“So we know that we just have to call on our partners,” Canipe said.

“Breakfast With Bing” was, in part, a way to close out the campaign.

Of the roughly 360 graduates since 2016, about 98 percent have gone on to college — and 38 percent of those were first-time students.

Steve Fisher, chairman and CEO of F&M Bank and emcee for the breakfast, said most of those students chose to attend Rowan-Cabarrus Community College as their first stop on the road to their future.

“So a lot of what we’re doing stays right here at home,” he said.

The sudden rise in enrollment numbers is, in part, due to a new “all in” initiative at two middle schools and two high schools — Erwin Middle, North Rowan Middle, East Rowan High and North Rowan High. It allows all eighth-graders and freshmen to enroll in the program.

Crosby Scholars is a free program open to Rowan-Salisbury students in sixth through 10th grade. In Crosby Scholars, students learn to think critically about their future and make plans for life after high school.

This year’s class of 156 seniors will graduate from every traditional Rowan-Salisbury Schools high school, as well as Rowan County Early College. Senior advisers trained by Crosby Scholars staff have been meeting with these seniors and assisting them with their plans for after high school.

This year, the program is planning its annual Senior Gala to celebrate the college acceptances of its Class of 2018 on the afternoon of April 29.

By Post Education

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Published 12:00 am Thursday, November 9, 2017

Rowan County Crosby Scholars

SALISBURY —  Nearly 2,500 students are Crosby Scholars, the group’s Rowan County affiliate revealed during its annual board of directors meeting. That brings the number of students served by the program in its first five years to more than 5,000.

This year, Crosby Scholars is piloting an “all in” concept at two middle schools — Erwin and North Rowan — and two high schools — East Rowan and North Rowan — which allows all eighth-graders and freshmen to enroll in the program.

Crosby Scholars’ academy workshops and opportunities for community service will be taken into these schools so that students are better able to meet the program requirements. North Rowan High School recently held a “Crosby Blitz” day, with students attending workshops that included a session with Catawba College President Brien Lewis.

With two classes of graduates, the Crosby program has sent 360 college students off to further their education. Crosby Scholars has awarded $147,550 in Last Dollar Grants to these students — money that covers unmet financial need and was raised through community support of the program’s BBQ, Bands and Boots fundraisers. The program has begun a Challenge Campaign for Last Dollar Grants this year, as a means to sustain the ability to award these grants.

This year’s class of 156 seniors will graduate from every traditional Rowan-Salisbury Schools high school, as well as Rowan County Early College. Senior advisers trained by Crosby Scholars staff have been meeting with these seniors and assisting them with their plans for after high school. This year, the program is planning its annual Senior Gala to celebrate the college acceptances of its Class of 2018 on the afternoon of April 29.

The Crosby Scholars program relies on its board of directors to accomplish its mission of ensuring every Rowan-Salisbury Schools student has the opportunity to pursue college or postsecondary education. The program recognized the directors whose terms on the board have ended: Judy Grissom, Bob Setzer and Jason Walser. The board will welcome three new directors to the Class of 2020 in its first meeting of 2018: Pastor Timothy Bates, Terry Osborne and Tracie Sells.

By Rebecca Rider

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Published 12:00 am Sunday, June 18, 2017

SALISBURY — It may be summer, but that doesn’t mean that students are taking a break. During the first week of vacation, 22 Crosby Scholars students chose to spend their time at an optional college prep camp.

Crosby Scholars is a non-profit that helps students prepare for life after high school. Called “Pathways to College,” the weeklong event pulled Crosby Scholars students from all over the county, and served rising ninth through rising 12^th graders.

“So that’s a pretty big spread of students,” Flora Calderon-Steck, Crosby Scholars program director said.

But looking at the group, you’d never know it. Calderon-Steck said the students had been engaged and excited about the opportunity, and came up with creative solutions to problems and to their futures and college careers.

For the past four years, Crosby Scholars has hosted “critical thinking camps” over the summer months. This year, the organization is launching its first pathways camp with a goal to help students plan the route to their futures — from classes to scholarships to applications.

“They have kind of a visual of the process and the importance of starting early,” Calderon-Steck said students gained during the week.

Jenny Billings, chair of study skills, developmental reading and English and English at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, said student spent the week taking career assessments and personality tests. They also spent time listening to speakers from Rowan-Cabarrus discuss financial aid, career counseling, advising and college transfer possibilities.

“The sole purpose was to give them an early exposure to thinking about RCCC and college pathways, and I think we’ve accomplished that this week,” Billings said.

Calderon-Steck said the Pathways to College camp offered students a chance to “step back and do some self awareness exercises.” It’s good for students to think about where they want to go in life, and how they’re going to get there, she said.

Because of the camp experience and Crosby Scholars, she said, this group of students will be prepared when they hit junior year and begin applying for colleges.

“They’ve done all the ground work, so it decreases the level of stress significantly,” she said.

The group already knew what careers they wanted to pursue, which colleges they wanted to go to and the classes and experiences they needed to have in order to get there. It will give them a significant leg-up on their peers, Calderon-Steck said.

“If they do that in junior year they’re already way behind,” she said of the prep work.

For East Rowan High School junior Dakota Jacobsen, the experience helped him plan for his education — which will be significant, as he plans to attend law school.

But the biggest help, he said, has been the financial pointers.

“It just gave me more ideas of how to pay for college and what I need to do to succeed in my goal,” he said.

West Rowan High School junior Emma Ryerson said the Pathways to College camp helped her come up with ideas that will make her more of a well-rounded college applicant.

“And that helps a lot,” she said.

Emma wants to attend N.C. State and study veterinary science. But the experience also helped her think of other career options that might suit her. According to a career and personality test, she said, she’d probably enjoy a career in forensic science, as well.

“It was very eye opening,” she said.

Calderon-Steck said she was proud of the group.

“They stuck through it,” she said. “… These are the students who are committed.”

By Post Lifestyles

By Post Education

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Published 12:00 am Thursday, October 20, 2016

SALISBURY — Whether they’re greeting and checking in students at a Saturday Academy or leading a group of high school scholars in an informational grade advisor session, volunteers are vital to the Crosby Scholars program.

At the high school level, the grade advisor program requires volunteer preparation and allows the development of a relationship between the advisor and the students in a particular grade and school. Crosby grade advisors meet three to four times a year with high school scholars, assisting them with becoming competitive college applicants and beginning the process of selecting their best match in terms of post-secondary education. Rowan-Salisbury guidance counselors, as well as staff from the admissions department at Catawba College serve at a variety of schools in this capacity, but more help is needed!

With the addition of seniors to our program in 2015-16, Crosby Scholars added a variety of roles to our list of volunteer options. We currently have a dozen essay readers who assist our students by providing anonymous feedback on their application essays. Often, our seniors having multiple essays to write, so this is an area where we would welcome additional help! In addition to essay feedback, the Crosby Scholars program also provides mock interviews for our seniors, and would welcome volunteers who would be interested in conducting these.

Perhaps one of the most rewarding volunteer opportunities the Crosby program offers is the role of senior advisor. For the 2016-17 academic year, the Crosby office trained over 44 volunteers to work with 199 seniors. These mentors meet with their assigned students beginning in the summer before the senior year. They continue to meet monthly with their seniors, assisting with the total college application process and plans for after high school. The role of the senior advisor culminates at the Crosby Scholars Senior Gala, an event during which each senior’s college plans are announced and celebrated.

All volunteers who work with students undergo Crosby Scholars training and background checks through the Rowan-Salisbury School system. For more information about volunteering with Rowan County Crosby Scholars, please call our office at 704-762-3512, or email info@crosbyscholarsrowan.org.

By Rebecca Rider

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Published 12:00 am Saturday, June 18, 2016

By Rebecca Rider

rebecca.rider@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Rowan County Early College students who are members of the Crosby Scholars program have spent the past week studying the impacts of technology on society.

Crosby Scholars, a non-profit organization geared towards helping students prepare for and attend college, holds “Critical Thinking Camps” once a year during the summer. The point is to get students thinking about the world around them.

“That’s a skill that’s needed in college,” Allison Lee, high school program coordinator with Crosby Scholars said.

The students, rising freshman through rising seniors, spent the last five days studying the pros and cons of technology and learning about solar energy, pollution and wire-tapping.

Students learned to take a problem apart, put it back together and find a solution.

“When I first got here I didn’t know what to expect because, you know, it’s a camp. It’s summer. A lot of kids didn’t want to be here,” Keshone Evan, a rising junior, said.

But during the week, Evan listened to speakers like Shawn Campion, president of Integro; Fran Koster, author of the “Discovering the New America” and Ken Clifton, an RCCC instructor who has devoted his life to clean living.

Evan said that he’s never thought about how technology could be used positively, to create change or clean up the world — instead of a simple means of communication.

“Since we have it we might as well use it for good,” he said.

He hopes that the skills he learned during the week will help him be able to give unique, well thought-out answers in his classes the coming year.

Student Jessica Driver said the speakers and the camp gave her a chance to really delve into topics. Driver worked with a group of other students throughout the week, studying the effects of technology on declining bee populations.

“I think it’s a wonderful opportunity,” she said.

Lee said she hopes it opens up new horizons for the students.

“At the end of the day, this will kind of encourage our students to think beyond the bounds,” she said.

Contact reporter Rebecca Rider at 704-797-4264.

By Post Education

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Published 12:00 am Thursday, December 10, 2015

Rowan County Crosby Scholars is finding creative ways to ensure each student has exposure to the idea of education beyond high school. Throughout Nov. the organization partnered with local companies to expose scholars to potential careers through career exploration trips.

“These tours are important because exposure is invaluable,” Michelle Strong, Crosby Scholars middle school program coordinator said. “Exposure opens our students’ minds to the possibilities of what they can achieve.”

Eighth grade students from Knox, North Rowan, and Erwin middle schools gained insight into workforce development with Integro Technologies. A tour of the facility showed students the many careers they could choose based on their academic paths.

Intergro Technologies President Shawn Campion spoke with students and stressed the importance of diversity in respect to job types, explaining that he needed a variety of specializations to help his company run efficiently.

“We believe that it is vital to reach out to the young people of our community,” Campion said. “We also want students and the community to know that cutting-edge technology careers are available right here in Rowan County.”

Students from West Rowan Middle had the opportunity to meet with a National Guard representative and tour the Rowan County Airport. They heard from Airport Director Thad Howell, a commercial pilot, on what it means to have a career in both aviation and the military.

As a second generation pilot, Howell described the advantages, experiences and rewards of being a pilot. Howell also encouraged young female students to continue pursuing and exploring careers traditionally encouraged for males. Students also heard from Major Potvin of the Army National Guard about serving their country as a career. From saving people to battling forest fires or rescuing others from floods, Potvin stated that his career gave him a satisfaction that no paycheck could provide.

With over 1,000 middle school scholars in their program, Crosby Scholars’ efforts to expose its students to the many career options available to them helps to prepare them for their futures, college and life.

By Post Lifestyles

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Published 12:00 am Thursday, September 17, 2015

Crosby Scholars’ BBQ, Bands, & Boots

2 pics Good Eats, Good Music, Great Cause!  Join us for the Second Annual BBQ, Bands, & Boots fundraiser to benefit Rowan County Crosby Scholars on Friday, Sept. 25 from 6 to 11 p.m. in the F&M Trolley Barn.

The evening’s entertainment features high-energy bluegrass and beyond-bluegrass music of The Railsplitters from Boulder, Colorado.  Jim ‘N Nicks Bar-B-Q will serve up slow-smoked BBQ pork and chicken, sides, and dessert.  Beer, wine, and Cheerwine will be provided.  And back by popular demand – Bourbon on the Bread Truck with specially-selected top shelf bourbons.  Additional musical performances by mandolin sensation Jonah Horton & Friends and the Bemus Kids.  And we have a few surprises in store.

Admission prices are $45/person and $80/couple.  Make your reservations online at www.crosbyscholarsrowan.org or mail your check to Rowan County Crosby Scholars, 225 N. Main St., Salisbury, NC  28144.

All proceeds will directly support our Last Dollar Grant program.  Last Dollar Grants are need-based scholarships for Rowan County Crosby Scholars seniors who have unmet financial need to attend their college of choice.

By Jeanie Groh

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Published 12:00 am Thursday, July 23, 2015

College is a match to be made, not a prize to be won.

In its third year, the Crosby Scholars program is continuing to work to build a college-going culture in Rowan County. Last year, the program enrolled more than 2,300 students, an increase of more than 600 students from its initial year.

This fall, Crosby Scholars will be working with its first class of seniors – more than 200 young men and women from all over Rowan County who will be the first graduating class of Rowan Crosby Scholars.

Crosby Scholars has a need for dedicated, caring people to assist high school students as grade advisors and senior advisors.

As part of the Crosby Scholars Senior Program, each senior is promised a one-on-one advisor to walk them through the college admissions process. Some students have designated parents, guardians or friends to fill this role, but more than 160 students have requested that the program provide someone to serve in this capacity for them.

Senior advisors will work with senior students one-on-one, meeting up to seven times during the school year to keep students on track for high school graduation and college admission.

Realizing that college preparation must begin early, grade advisors will work with groups of students in grades nine through 11 at each high school to help them begin the process of developing their best possible list of opportunities for post-secondary education.

Grade advisors share positive personal, social and educational experiences with the students. They lead discussions on grade-specific topics focused on preparing for the college admissions process. These topics help students build a foundation of knowledge that prepares them for their senior year. These meetings take place four to five times throughout the school year at each high school.

Training sessions are available through Crosby Scholars, which will help the advisors assist students with college applications, essays, financial aid forms, etc. For more information about volunteering with the Crosby Scholars program, contact Jennifer Canipe at 704-762-3512, or visit the Crosby Scholars website at www.crosbyscholarsrowan.org.