By Luis A. Guaillas, 11th grader at Brien McMahon - I have the distinct pleasure of sharing my experience of touring Miles College located in Fairfield, Alabama. This was the last college we visited on the Carver Spring Tour. There was no mistaking the colors representing Miles College – purple and gold were prominently displayed everywhere. From our formal presentation we learned that the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church founded Miles College in 1898. It’s well known as a historically black liberal arts college and a Christian school. There are approximately 1,500 students enrolled.

By Anthony W. Mayhew Jr., 11th Grader at Brien McMahon High School – Savannah College of Art and Design, affectionately known as SCAD, has its main campus in Savannah, Georgia and multiple locations for students in Atlanta, Hong Kong and even the South of France. SCAD was founded in 1978 and its doors officially opened in 1979, making it a relatively young school. Today, we visited the Atlanta, Georgia campus in the heart of the city. As we stroll to meet our tour guide we passed by students with purple hair, expressive outfits and confident self-expressions. As we entered the building where our tour guide was awaiting us, we knew very quickly that we were in an environment filled with creative minds.

By Cardan Grant and Tyrese Brown, 11th Graders at Brien McMahon High School — Morehouse College is a private, all-male, liberal arts, historically black college in Atlanta, Georgia. Today, we learned how to become a “Morehouse man,” thanks to the Carver Foundation of Norwalk. We are two of the twenty-seven students selected to participate in the Carver Foundation of Norwalk 49th annual spring college tour.

By Makayla Gary, 11th grader at Brien McMahon High School -- Today, we visited the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). It is their 50th anniversary. UAB is a public research university and the state’s largest employer. UAB is located in the Southside of downtown Birmingham encompassing more than 100 city blocks. Birmingham is the most populated city in Alabama and has a rich history with the civil rights movement. We could not visit Birmingham without thinking of the civil rights movement. The Birmingham Campaign was started in the spring of 1963 and is considered one of the most effective initiatives of the civil rights movement. Lunch counter sit-ins, marches and boycotts of merchants were non-violent methods used to protest segregation and inequality. Thinking of the suffering and violence endured by the black citizens of Birmingham still give me the chills. The unrest brought president Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. to Birmingham. I encourage everyone to read Martin Luther King Jr. letter from the Birmingham jail - you will be inspired!

By Kelvin Reynoso, 10th Grade, Norwalk High School – Benedict College in Columbia, SC, has been my favorite school so far on the Carver Spring College Tour, and I am eager to apply for admission in a few years. The ambiance was comfortable, and as we walked throughout campus, current students came up to us and encouraged us to attend.

By Nyema Burns & Sarah Caidor, 11th graders at Brien McMahon High School — Spelman College is a private, liberal arts women's college located in Atlanta, Georgia, founded in 1881. The school is named after John D. Rockefeller’s wife, Laura Spelman Rockefeller and is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Spelman College is America's oldest private historically black liberal arts college for women.

By Myles Russell, 11th Grader at Norwalk High School, on the Carver Spring College Tour — Allen University is a liberal arts institution located in Columbia, South Carolina, with 20-acre campus. The school is the oldest historically black college in the state.  The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) founded Allen University in 1870. The school moved to Columbia in 1880 when it was renamed Allen University in honor of Bishop Richard Allen, founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.