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Rising 6th graders at Carver's Summer Transition Program at West Rocks Middle School learn the Marshmallow Challenge!

Our rising 6th-grade summer campers learned to...

  • Understand the importance of teamwork and failure in science and engineering

  • Understand that some shapes are stronger than others

  • Understand that even weak materials can be made stronger with good design techniques, and that distribution of mass is an important consideration when building a tower

  • Understand that compression and tension affect the stability of a structure

  • Compare their model to others to understand why some models are stronger than others

  • Understand why engineers consider tension and compression forces when designing a building or structure.

Summer 2022 is Underway!

Carver rising 6th graders just returned from a traditional New England sleepaway camp in Maine. They explored the woods, waters, and fields of The Ecology School at the River Bend Farm, a historic 105-acre farm located on a scenic bend in the Saco River, just twenty minutes from the Maine coast. Next year, this initial cohort of students will return along with the next group of rising 6th graders that follow them.

We operate 12 distinct summer programs for more than 1,000 students this summer throughout Norwalk. Carver campers have a sense of community, develop intergenerational relationships, and learn through first-hand experiences. Trained, caring adult role models help children feel loved, capable, and included. Camp helps children grow by providing a supervised, positive environment that has safety as a primary commitment.

Carver summer transition programs are designed to help incoming 6th and 9th-grade students transition into Norwalk’s four middle and two high schools. Programming includes individualized instruction, parental involvement, small group learning experiences, diverse enrichment activities, free transportation, and full-day activities benefiting working families. Students learn the basics of navigating their respective new schools. The incoming 9th-graders learn how to read a transcript, understand graduation requirements, earn credits in courses, and look ahead to potential career options. Students use Naviance/Family Connection to develop an individualized Student Success Plan.

For students ages 5 through 13 years old, we have the Summer Enrichment Programs at the Carver Community Center and Columbus Magnet School. In addition to play and fun, these summer experiences offer project-based and hands-on personalized learning to prepare students for the coming school year. Our summer literacy program, facilitated by certified teachers, uses the myON and Lexia Reading Core 5 software to provide personalized learning. NPS-certified teachers also teach math sessions, the two primary programs are TimezAttack and ThinkCentral. TimezAttack is a computer-based math fact game that strongly supports fact fluency. ThinkCentral is the online component of the GO Math Common Core math program used in NPS K-5 classes.

There are summer learning programs at Side by Side Charter School and numerous elementary schools for our After the Bell students.

We will be reporting here often about all these experiences our children will be having this summer!

Carver Campers experience a week at The Ecology School in Maine!

If I had one word to describe last week, it would be JOY - I was walking on sunshine the entire week! I will never forget the energy and light that the campers brought. It was very quiet after they left.

Meg Edstrom Jones | Director of Educational Partnerships & The Teacher Institute

Thanks to the generosity and vision of The Grossman Family Foundation, rising Norwalk 6th graders experienced The Ecology School in Maine for a week.

See all the photos here on Facebook.

At this renowned sleepaway summer camp, Carver kids explored the woods, waters, and fields of The Ecology School at the River Bend Farm, a historic 105-acre farm located on a scenic bend in the Saco River, just twenty minutes from the Maine coast.

Next year, this initial cohort of students will return along with the next rising 6th graders that follow them.

“What an absolute privilege and honor to work alongside Mr. Rob, Ms. Manuela, Ms. Andrea, and ‘Mr. Williams’ (as Rob liked to call him) and to meet, explore, and learn with the campers,” said Ms. Jones. “I absolutely cannot wait until next year. I am so excited for this legacy that has started.”

The Ecology School programs are experiential, hands-on and fun. Our campers were immersed in complex ecosystems where experienced educators use narrative, hands-on activities to illuminate the scientific relationships among organisms (including humans) and their environment.

The sustainable riverside campus is home to forest, fields, and a farm, which enable the practical study of biology, ecology, nature, and human impact. The Ecology School has made the study of ecology accessible and enjoyable for tens of thousands of people since 1998.

Our campers experienced a joyful relationship with science—one that deepened their understanding of the world around us. They approached the science of ecology through wide-eyed, hands-on exploration of the ecosystems, making nature’s lessons memorable with play, humor, and games, and applicable with real life models of sustainable farming and living.

CT Summer at the Museum - FREE!

The Connecticut Summer at the Museum program is returning for the 2022 summer season.

Starting Friday, July 1, all children and one accompanying adult will receive free admission to over 90 museums across Connecticut. This program will be offered through September 6th to all Connecticut children, ages 18 and under.

Before you visit, check each participant’s website below for specific program details and ticket availability.

Connecticut Summer at the Museum is made possible through an investment from the federal COVID-19 recovery funding Connecticut is receiving from the American Rescue Plan Act. The program is administered by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development’s Office of the Arts.

The Maritime Aquarium

Carver students visit the UCONN Stamford campus

Thanks to our capable and enthusiastic Future Readiness Coordinators, Rayshonda Mitchell and Benson Casirmir at Brien McMahon and Norwalk High Schools respectively, 12 Carver high school students recently visited UCONN’s Stamford campus.

UCONN Stamford students receive all the benefits of a prestigious public research university in a small college setting. UCONN Stamford was founded in 1952 and moved downtown in 1998, putting students at the center of a robust business community and energizing city. The campus offers four-year undergraduate degrees in a number of majors, including Business, Communication, Digital Media Design, Economics, English, Human Development and Family Studies, History, Political Science, and Psychological Sciences.

Our Carver students explored this small urban campus with three dorms, a diverse student population, and an abundance of professional opportunities. Many of our students, such as Taylor Duhart, have attended UCONN through the years, at the main campus in Storrs and at this satellite campus in Stamford.

The Stamford campus offers a small and personalized classroom experience. Classes can have between five to 60 students. The Admissions Department expressed that many students start at the Stamford campus and transfer to Storrs after two years. It is a common way to be a part of the collegiate experience provided at UCONN.  

Students have employment and internship opportunities with local and national Fortune 500 Companies like Synchrony Bank which is located on the Stamford campus. The Carver students toured various activity areas, classrooms, the top-of-the-line apartment-style dormitory, and the Career Counseling area.  

UCONN Career Counselor, Tara Malone challenged our students to think of careers that focused on values, interests, and long-term goals. She also discussed that if you enter UCONN as an undecided student, the Counseling Department has assessments that help students narrow down their choices and focus on long-term goals.  

UCONN's Storrs campus, as well as the satellite campuses in Stamford, Waterbury, and Avery Point, are listed on College Choice's list of the 20 best colleges in Connecticut.

UCONN is marking its 10th straight year among the nation's Top 25 public universities, safeguarding and building on its strengths over the last decade as a pacesetter in student success and academic excellence.

Carver Students Visit St. Peter's University

Thanks to volunteer Jim Conti and the enthusiasm of our Future Readiness Coordinators, Rayshonda Mitchell and Benson Casirmir at Brien McMahon and Norwalk High Schools respectively, 10 Carver high school students recently traveled to Jersey City, New Jersey to visit St. Peter's University.

Mr. Conti was a first-generation college student who graduated from St. Peter’s in 1993 with a BS in Computer Science. Jim went on to work at Goldman Sachs within the Prime Brokerage Hedge Fund Demand Team.

The Carver group of staff and students received the red-carpet treatment from the staff and student ambassadors!

Saint Peter's University is a private Jesuit university. The university offers over 60 undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 2,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students. Its teams play in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, of which it is a founding member.

The university is located on a 30-acre campus, a hidden gem in the northeast located only 12 minutes from New York City by train. The Peacocks athletic programs are proud participants in NCAA Division1 - MAC Conference sports.

In 2022 the men’s basketball team gained national recognition, becoming the tenth No. 15 seed in history to upset a No. 2 seed after knocking off the Kentucky Wildcats. Beating Murray State in the next round, they became the third No. 15 seed in tournament history (and the third in the last nine years) to make the Sweet 16. To conclude their historic run, they upset Purdue to become the first No. 15 seed in tournament history to advance to the Elite Eight.

The campus represents a diverse and multi-cultural population of mostly commuter students. St Peter's is recognized as a top affordable choice school in New Jersey, by the U.S. Department of Education and provides 98% of its full-time undergraduates with scholarships. 

Our students visited the STEM Engagement Center and participated in an activity that included teamwork, creative thinking, and civil engineering tasks.

Other campus highlights included a visit to the dormitories, learning about the honors program, and hearing about the over 60 majors offered on the campus like nursing and cyber security.  

The students ate lunch and had a special visit with St Peter’s mascot Pete the Peacock! 

Carver alumnae Pauldine Joseph is profiled in "VoyageMIA" magazine

Way back in 2012 and before, we shared stories about Pauldine and her sister Berdine. In 2012, Carver had nominated and won for the City of Norwalk selection into the nation's "100 Best Communities for Young People" by the Washington DC-based America's Promise Alliance. Carver also won this distinction for Norwalk in 2010 and 2011. At this 2012 Promise celebration, the Joseph sisters were our featured singers. And they have been constant Carver celebrities ever since!

You can find Pauldine’s Instagram platform here.

Here’s the interview in VoyageMIA.

Hi Pauldine, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Growing up in a strict Haitian family where the motto was Lekol (school), Lakay (home), Legliz (church) makeup, and fashion became an escape for me at an early age. I recall spending countless hours on YouTube during my school breaks, watching beauty tutorials from the black OG YT gurus absorbing as much as I can, and practicing on myself and my friends.

Those years spent practicing makeup tutorials eventually landed me actual clients during my years as an undergrad. I was the girl in the dorms doing makeup for birthdays, parties, fashion shows, etc, I even installed a few sew-ins here and there. I started sharing my makeup videos on Instagram and OOTD pictures and my followers would message me asking for makeup application tips, product recommendations, or where I purchased an item of clothing.

It was then I realized I had “influence “ and I was building an authentic platform where my audience genuinely trusted my expertise. Fast forward to 2020, the pandemic hit, and my 9-5 transitioned to remote work which granted me more time to focus on content creating.

I used any free time outside of my day job to intentionally create and with consistency, my content took off. What started as a hobby/ side hustle evolved into a budding career that I am most certainly proud of.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road at all as content creating/ influencing is not a “traditional “ career path.

I’ve definitely struggled with self-doubt, encountering creator’s block, and balancing 16 hr+ days between my full-time job and influencing.

I became my own personal assistant, photographer, videographer, editor, stylist, manager, and accountant, wearing 15 different hats is no easy feat but I wouldn’t change a thing about the journey.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I post weekly fashion/beauty-related content like hair and makeup tutorials, and OOTD Inspo, and I’m a thrift girlie so I also post reels for the girls that like to look good without breaking the bank.

What I’m most proud of is the platform I’ve been able to build just by being my authentic self. I find so much joy in curating content that resonates well with my audience. My goal is to inspire Black Women to be their bold and unique selves always, in all ways.

We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking?
I think putting yourself out there, sharing your life and your craft with the world is taking a risk.

Knowing that not everyone will be receptive to your craft, accepting that what you post is out there for any and everyone to judge and have an opinion on can be absolutely terrifying.

It was extremely hard for me at first and I’m still hard on myself sometimes but I’ve learned to put my best foot forward, create intentionally, post and just let go.

Carver's year-round program partners are fun destinations for kids this summer

The Maritime Aquarium

As we prepare our dozen summer programs throughout Norwalk for more than 1,500 K-9 kids, here are some of our program partners that are open for kids now and all year long.

The Maritime Aquarium regularly hosts events for children, including story time and creature encounters where guests get an opportunity to get up close with sea life. 

The Stepping Stones Museum for Children gives children a place to play and interact with educational exhibits that teach them about energy, movement, and light.

Lake Compounce amusement park is open for its 2022 season.

Connecticut Science Center hosts weekly educational events for children, including teaching kids to prevent fires and hosting story time.

The Connecticut Science Center

Bishop’s Orchards offers pick-your-own quality fruit directly from their bushes or trees. Each year the Pick-Your-Own season may vary due to weather and crop abundance, yet generally runs from mid-June until the end of October.

The Chelsea Piers Athletic Club offers a variety of youth sports leagues including swimming, tennis, parkour, soccer, basketball, lacrosse, skating, and baseball.

Norwalk beaches, parks, and trails are among the finest in the state.

The New Canaan Nature Center teaches children about wildlife through educational programs. It also has the oldest nature-based preschool in history.

And that is just a short list of all the destinations and experiences we have in store for our students this summer!

8th Annual Golf Classic - see the photos!

See all the photos in two Facebook albums. The first album here is of the reception, lunch, and day of golf. The second album here is of the evening program which included a reception, silent auction, prizes for the various winners of the day of golf, and dinner.

Many thanks for the leadership and generosity of our 8th Annual Golf Classic Committee: Jay Hinton (Chair); Jon Adelman; Deirdre Cavanagh; Bill Gallagher; Jeff Manchester; Ryan Nally; Suzanne Small; Rob Strickland; Oscar Villalonga; and Jon Whitcomb.

Our foursome sponsors included the Richard and Barbara Whitcomb Foundation; The LaCroix Family; RealBlocks; Rich Baudouin; Jon Whitcomb; Diserio Martin; Diageo; COFACE; Bill Gallagher; Jay Hinton; Michael Gregorich; Rob Strickland; John Arredondo; Jim Adrian; Bowhead Specialty; Fairfield County Bank; Jay Levine; David Pramer; Deirdre Cavanagh & Jon Adelman; and Moffly Media.

Our silent auction included exciting experiences such as a boat cruise, a fishing charter, and golf at renowned private clubs.

Thank you everyone for a spectacular day at Shorehaven Golf Club!

Berdine's "Make it Work" Single Release Party on Saturday, June 25th!

We regularly write about Carver alumnae Berdine Joseph here.

Berdine grew up in Haiti before her family moved to the United States. She graduated from Norwalk High School in 2014, and through the years she has supported the Carver community with her great talent, such as at our 2022 Child of America Gala.

An especially proud moment for us all was when Berdine courageously performed on The Voice!

Now there is a great opportunity to support Berdine’s career at the MAKE IT WORK Single Release Party on Saturday, June 25th!

The event is at SPACE67, a multi-purpose creative workspace and studio with a full cyclorama wall. It’s located at the former home of the Fairfield County Bank at 67 Wall Street, Norwalk, CT.

Congratulations, Berdine!