Left to right: Cesare Ehdaie, Katy Bird, Chantelle Hunt, Peter Brewer, Davina Steingold, Dean Meace, Jordan Keen, Charlotte Croft, and Mathew Ferrier.
Youngsters encouraged by Exeter Progression Awards
The University of Exeter and Exeter College are collaborating with five city secondary schools to assist young people in their route into further education.
Now in its fourth year, the Exeter Progression Awards will support two students from each of the schools through their courses at Exeter College.
£1,000 over two years is awarded to each student to help them achieve their full potential and is paid in instalments in recognition of their effort and attainment as they progress through their course. Previous students have used this income for buying books, laptops and to fund additional courses to support their educational ambitions. In addition, the University and College offer support and guidance to encourage them to aim high.
Exeter Progression Awards recipients, and their chosen College course, are:
West Exe Technology College, St Thomas
Jordan Keen – NVQ3 Catering Craft
Laura Bruce – Creative Diploma
St Peter’s Church of England Aided School
Cesare Ehdaie – A-levels in French, History, Eng Literature, Classics
Chantelle Hunt – International Baccalaureate
Isca College of Media Arts
Davina Steingold – A-levels in Media Studies, Photography and English Literature
Dean Meace – BTEC Public Services
St Luke’s Science and Sports College
Katy Bird – A-levels in English Language, Sociology, History
Peter Brewer – A-levels in English Language, Biology, Sociology, Politics
St James School, Beacon Heath
Charlotte Croft – A-levels in English Language, Fine Art, Classics, Spanish
Mathew Ferrier – A-levels in Law, English Language & Literature, Business
30 students have received awards over the years, and 4 are currently at university. The awards are intended to make a real difference to students, who have had to overcome barriers to achieve high academic results. Bereavement, illness, troubled social experiences and having caring responsibilities are examples of the challenging circumstances that these young people have had to overcome.
Emma Stephenson, Outreach Manager at the University of Exeter explains: “The Awards are a major element of our outreach work with the Exeter Schools and they demonstrate the University’s commitment to raising aspirations in the city. We hope that the support offered helps their progress from Exeter College to higher education.”
As part of the Award Agreement, recipients are asked to work with their schools during the course of their studies to act as role models to younger pupils.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Janice Kay said, ‘As far as we know the Exeter Progression Awards are unique in the way that the University and FE College have come together to jointly fund and support students. What we are most proud of is that every year we get nominations that prove that the young people of this city are capable of the most exceptional things.’
The nominated students, their families and teachers came to the University on Thursday 14 May for an evening presentation to receive certificates and to sign award agreements.
Date: 19 May 2009
