The EXCEL for Youth program offers enrichment program for students.

This will be the 34th year that EXCEL for Youth, part of the School of Extended and International Education at Sonoma State University, opens its door for students over the summer. The unique academic enrichment program for students entering fourth through eighth grades offers a wide range of classes covering interests that simply aren’t available in many local school systems.

When it was originally launched, the program was much smaller and only in recent years has it grown to the size it is today, offering almost 70 classes over the summer. Greer Upton, a former director of the program, was one of the key people who helped start the program. Alison Marks then ran the program for 10 years, helping it grow before she retired.

Now Cathy Hatcher-England, an educator who is actively involved locally in curriculum development and project-based learning, is the program director and is looking to keep the program expanding and growing.

A former teacher in the program, she has been the director since 2014 and has used her knowledge of curriculum development and numerous local contacts to help create a program rich with classes that capture the interests of the 700 students that attended last summer.

“We try and encompass a whole package of classes based on the concept of enrichment and how it reflects with the students,” she said. “They can learn new skill sets that you wouldn’t get in school right now.”

Using her experience in the classroom, Hatcher-England wants to offer classes that any student can enjoy, ones that involve technology, hands-on learning and team building.

Hatcher-England is someone who has seen the value in this type of education as both of her own daughters have taken courses at EXCEL. Her youngest, now a biochemistry major in college, was part of a medical class when she was 8, which Hatcher-England feels was important in exposing her to new ideas and concepts.

This summer EXCEL will offer 68 classes over six sessions. Each session is one week long, with four of the sessions offering morning and afternoon courses and two sessions that offer all-day classes. The courses are highly diverse with expected options like chemistry, graphic design and creative design mixed with Digital Media Bootcamp, Lego Robotics, Fantasy Baseball Statistics and Fashion Design.

“I try and have a third of classes be new each year,” said Hatcher-England, who receives calls for proposals as well as ideas for classes from local teachers she knows. “I ask teachers, ‘What do you love to teach?’ and then ask them to come teach it for me.”

She also has students complete evaluations on classes, offers online surveys with parents and requests feedback on a list of possible classes for the following year to ensure she is able to match students’ desire with teachers’ creativity.

“Our mission statement is to provide education to the community – lifelong learning for everyone 8 to 88,” she said. “We try very hard to fulfill that mission statement.”

For more information on the EXCEL for Youth program, visit www.sonoma.edu/exed/excel/