Fredonia school, SUNY Fredonia partnership ‘awesome’
OBSERVER Photos by Braden Carmen SUNY Fredonia student Anna Valone, a Fredonia High School graduate, spoke to the benefits of a partnership between the schools that allows college students the opportunity to edit the Fredonia Forum newsletter.
SUNY Fredonia Professor Dr. Natalie Gerber, whose class in the English department of SUNY Fredonia is part of a partnership with Fredonia Central School District, introduced her students at a recent Fredonia Board of Education meeting.
OBSERVER Photos by Braden Carmen SUNY Fredonia student Anna Valone, a Fredonia High School graduate, spoke to the benefits of a partnership between the schools that allows college students the opportunity to edit the Fredonia Forum newsletter.
SUNY Fredonia Professor Dr. Natalie Gerber, whose class in the English department of SUNY Fredonia is part of a partnership with Fredonia Central School District, introduced her students at a recent Fredonia Board of Education meeting.
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As part of a partnership between SUNY Fredonia and Fredonia Central School District, students from SUNY Fredonia have played a major role with editing the Fredonia Forum newsletter. At a recent Fredonia Board of Education meeting, students from SUNY Fredonia spoke to their experience working with the district.
The partnership, which began in Fall of 2019, is led by SUNY Fredonia Professor Dr. Natalie Gerber and Fredonia District Clerk/Secretary to the Superintendent Christine Slagle. The mutually beneficial agreement allows for college students to get hands-on experience with copy editing, while the district receives dedicated input from invested college students. "They put hours into this," said Slagle. "I am so appreciative of that because it makes me better, as well."
"To be able to give the students an opportunity for hands-on learning and for a byline is extraordinary," added Dr. Gerber.
Among the group of students to attend the meeting was Fredonia High School graduate Anna Valone. The students all spoke to the valuable experience they gain as part of the partnership.
"As a Fredonia High School graduate, this project is really fun for me. It was really awesome to be able to see the inner workings of creating the Fredonia Forum, which is something I used to read," said Valone. "... There is so much more that happens behind the scenes compared to what the audience sees with the finished product."
The students also spoke to the strengthened ties to the community this partnership provides them with, as well as the pride of seeing their names attached to a professional publication.
"We believe that it's important to connect the college and the high school district," said Valone. "... College students being involved with the local high school will help students at the college feel like they belong in town, and it will help the town see the college students actively take part in the community."
To that point, Dr. Gerber feels an increased connection even as both a professor and as a Fredonia parent. "As a parent in the district and as a professor, I feel so much more connected to the school," said Gerber. "It has been a privilege throughout my children's lives to see how hard everyone works."