February 18, 2012

2012 Illini Summer Academies Registration Opens March 1

We are extremely excited to announce plans for the upcoming 2012 Illini Summer Academies (ISA). We have 11 Academies this year - up 3 from last year and introducing 4 NEW Academies - and have added an additional day of programming, including a 1/2 day of community service.

ISA is our summer teen "conference" that takes place on the University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana campus. It is open to ALL Illinois high school teens - it is not limited to 4-H members. It will start on Sunday afternoon, June 24 and continue through Wednesday afternoon, June 27. High school teens from across the state will participate in 15-hours of college department Academies, exploring a college major and potential careers with hands-on work in labs, classrooms, and field trips. The Leadership Academy will focus on Youth and Adult Partnerships this year and encourage adult participation for one day of the 3-day Academy.

2012 ISA Academy Options include:
* Aerospace Engineering
* Agricultural & Biological Engineering
* Art & Design
* Bioengineering
* Crop Sciences
* Electrical & Computer Engineering
* Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning
* Leadership
* Molecular & Cellular Biology
* Physics
* Veterinary Medicine

Registration is scheduled to open March 1 via the ISA website page: http://web.extension.illinois.edu/state4h/events/summeracademies.cfm. (2012 information for ISA will be posted as soon as possible, but no later than March 1). Registration MUST be completed on-line. Academies fill on a first-come, first-served basis. Some Academies do have grade restrictions because of needed high school class requirements and the nature of their Academy topics, however most are open to teens ages 14-18, as of 9/1/2012. Some Academies do not allow repeat attendees. Early-bird fee discounts are available through April 15. Final registration will close May 23.

We also encourage Extension staff to recruit volunteer chaperones for this event or consider attending themselves to assist with the non-Academy program (with County Director approval). We need adult support during the day to help with various aspects of transportation, lunch deliveries, evening program preparations, etc. and need evening support of chaperones. More details are included in the Promotional Packet and ISA Fact Sheet that are mentioned below.

Some promotional materials are currently available on the 4-H Contacts Portal for county/unit use to promote ISA (Events = Statewide = Illini Summer Academies). Those items include:
* Promotional Postcard for ISA Program announcement (Cards are being sent to 2011 attendees.)
* Promotional Packet of Information
* ISA Fact Sheet for Staff
* Promotional Flyer
* 2012 logo and ISA logo for use in newsletters and on your websites
* 4-H Member Scholarship Application (due no later than May 1)
* 2013 ISA Committee Application
* 2013 ISA Committee Information

Additional items will be forthcoming:
* Promotional Brochure
* Newsrelease, 4-H/Extension Newsletter Article, and a Letter to 4-H Volunteers
* Promotional PowerPoint

We hope you will join us in promoting this exciting teen event to high school youth across the state. Please let me know if you have questions about the program!

Posted by Debra Stocker at 2:30 PM | Permalink |
Categories: Employable Youth, ISA, Teens