Bard College Institute for Writing and Thinking Resumes Dynamic Partnership with Cooke Foundation’s Young Scholars Program in 2025
Blithewood at sunset. Photo by Karl Rabe
The Bard College Institute for Writing and Thinking (IWT) is developing a fourth year of educational programming for the Cooke Foundation’s (CF) impactful Young Scholars Program, which provides scholarships to exceptionally promising eighth grade students with financial need. Since 2020, IWT has played a key role in helping Young Scholars who have been selected for high school scholarships to begin preparing for high school while they are completing eighth grade. In spring 2025, IWT will deliver the fourth installment of the course, An Introduction to Writing and Thinking, which draws on the successful model of the Bard College Language and Thinking Program, to 55 eighth graders around the United States.
This eight-week online course will meet weekly in February and March 2025. The final meeting will be a celebratory reading bringing together Young Scholars, their teachers from IWT, their Cooke Foundation advisers, and friends and family to share selections from students’ written work created in this virtual community. This annual tradition is a moment of pride, accomplishment, and celebration for the Young Scholars.
The ongoing partnership between Bard IWT and the Cooke Foundation has helped CF’s Young Scholars develop skills and confidence as they prepare to enter high school. As a recent eighth grade Young Scholar wrote: “Although I may have been a bit hesitant to share my writing and join in on group discussions at first, the supportive and nurturing environment that was cultivated in our workshop allowed me to step outside of my comfort zone and embrace the sound of my voice . . . I loved how enriching each and every group discussion in our workshop was, where diverse perspectives broadened my understanding and deepened my appreciation for the multifaceted and meaningful nature of writing.”
Post Date: 11-13-2024
This eight-week online course will meet weekly in February and March 2025. The final meeting will be a celebratory reading bringing together Young Scholars, their teachers from IWT, their Cooke Foundation advisers, and friends and family to share selections from students’ written work created in this virtual community. This annual tradition is a moment of pride, accomplishment, and celebration for the Young Scholars.
The ongoing partnership between Bard IWT and the Cooke Foundation has helped CF’s Young Scholars develop skills and confidence as they prepare to enter high school. As a recent eighth grade Young Scholar wrote: “Although I may have been a bit hesitant to share my writing and join in on group discussions at first, the supportive and nurturing environment that was cultivated in our workshop allowed me to step outside of my comfort zone and embrace the sound of my voice . . . I loved how enriching each and every group discussion in our workshop was, where diverse perspectives broadened my understanding and deepened my appreciation for the multifaceted and meaningful nature of writing.”
Post Date: 11-13-2024