FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Sheila Champlin – (901) 448-4957, schampli@uthsc.edu or

Dena Owens – (901) 448-4072, dowens10@uthsc.edu 

 

Christopher Dean Education Foundation Holds

‘Releasing the Butterfly’ Summer SuperLearning Camp at

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center
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Memphis, Tenn. (July 11, 2011) – Christopher Dean is known to millions as the affable young man who helped his high school win the White House Race to the Top competition.  That win earned the school the appearance of President Barack Obama as the commencement speaker at Booker T. Washington (BTW) High School in May.  Dean’s introduction of the Commander in Chief – a deft blend of humor, youthful exuberance and sobering personal reflection – catapulted him onto the world stage and opened a bevy of opportunities.  Now, the Christopher Dean Education Foundation has established a special initiative designed to help him and 20 of his college-bound peers from BTW prepare themselves for academic success.  The “Releasing the Butterfly” Summer SuperLearning Camp is an intensive six-week college-preparatory series.  The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), located in downtown’s Memphis Medical Center, volunteered to host the camp, donating supplies, space, lunches and printing services.

“When we learned about Christopher’s foundation and his desire to better prepare for the challenges of a college career, we immediately contacted him to offer our support,” said Ken Brown, JD, MPA, PhD, executive vice chancellor and chief of operations at UTHSC.  “Our university community is committed to providing Christopher and the other camp participants with moral, as well as material support.  These young men and women have much to offer our community.  We want to help them realize their full potential,” he added.

Five facilitators and staff members from Intu Education, an academic enhancement system, will gather from July 11 through August 19 on the UTHSC campus to facilitate and guide the young adults.  Dean will serve as a student coordinator, as well as a participant in the camp.  The focus of the coursework will include:

n      Improvement and mastery of reading, writing and language skills;

n      Increased performance in logic and critical thinking through emphasis on arithmetic and mathematics; and

n      Empowering participants to make choices and value judgments that contribute to improved social skills.

 

During the Summer SuperLearning Camp students will meet five days each week from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  The program’s morning hours will be used to conduct academic instruction.  Afternoons will be spent reviewing plans and confirming details for attending college, learning about health science careers, as well as participating in media-based team-building activities that encourage group interaction and communication.  Participants will also engage in Friday field trip activities with younger students.  For more information about the summer camp, visit intued.com.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service.  In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.  The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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