Connecticut College Denies Dorm Residency to 12-Year-Old Student

Student Loan Girl — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:40:00 GMT

Although most children his age are entering the seventh grade this fall, 12-year-old Colin Carlson is getting ready to start his sophomore year of college — a feat that didn’t come easily for the gifted student who found that when it comes to whiz kids, some colleges are leery of opening both their doors and their dorms.

Colin, who already graduated from Stanford University Online High School, was set to attend Connecticut College where he planned to double major in eco-biology and environmental studies, but ultimately decided on another school after Connecticut College officials declined to give him dorm affiliation (“College Wary of 12-Year-Old Whiz Kid,” ABC News, Aug. 6, 2008).

“The deans at the school told me in a phone conversation that they were concerned about the adult activities that took place in the dorms,” says Jessica Carlson, Colin’s mother. She says she would never have permitted her son to live in a dormitory and had already found an apartment near campus for her and Colin to live in, but without the dorm experience “Colin would have been completely left out of the [campus] community.”

Colin’s Case an Example of Age Discrimination in Academia

Connecticut College declined to confirm that the 12-year-old had been admitted to the school, but Armando Bengochea, dean of the college community, says the school had concerns about someone so young being allowed into the dorms.

“As a matter of policy, Connecticut College does not condone the presence of 12-year-old children in residence halls after hours,” he says. “Residence halls are considered to be adult residences, and all programming and supervision of students is predicated on an assumption that students can be treated as adults.”

Nancy Green, the executive director for the National Association for Gifted Children, says the college’s concerns are understandable, but gifted students like Colin shouldn’t have their academic opportunities limited solely because of their age.

“There is a lot of resistance against gifted children. It’s not like a star athlete, who immediately, upon showing they’re great at something, they get a special team and a great choice,” she says. “Universities do slam the door [on gifted kids] and say it’s more trouble than it’s worth. Our country is set up on age-based earning, so age becomes a huge issue.”

Colin says he’s putting the experience behind him, and will instead begin his studies at the University of Connecticut as a sophomore honors student.

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Colleges and Universities to Subsidize Unpaid Internships

Student Loan Girl — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:08:00 GMT

Some small, private schools are beginning to offer internship grants to students who would otherwise have been unable to accept an unpaid or low-paying intern position, according to an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education (“Subsidizing the Internship,” July 18, 2008).

“That’s one of the more important aspects of career assistance that a university can provide a student,” said Mark Oldman, co-founder of Vault, a career-information company. Amid so many unpaid and low- paying internships, he told the Chronicle, “the university can come to the rescue financially.”

Once considered an added bonus to a college degree, internships have now become “a prime form of professional capital” for college students. But being that most internships offer little to no financial compensation, lower-income students are often placed at a disadvantage in the competitive internship field.

Internship-grant programs now being offered by schools across the country will subsidize unpaid or low-paying internships and allow more financially needy students to take advantage of these experience-building opportunities:

Connecticut College awarded up to $3,000 grants to two- thirds, or 285, college seniors
Austin College in Texas gave 54 students $2,300 each
Whitman College in Washington paid 26 students $2,100
Smith College in Massachusetts has pledged financial support for all internship-seeking students, regardless of their financial need

American University in Washington, D.C., while unable to offer direct financial assistance for internships, provides room and board for Native American students who secure internships at federal agencies or private corporations.

Butler University in Indianapolis, Ind., offers on-campus housing at a subsidized rate for summer interns through the Brain Gain program, as well as career counseling for those who participate in the program.

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Student Loan Blog : Connecticut College

Connecticut College Denies Dorm Residency to 12-Year-Old Student

Colleges and Universities to Subsidize Unpaid Internships