Seventy high schoolers will spend the next three weeks taking classes and building relationships through聽黑料不打烊鈥檚 college access and success program for academically promising students in聽Alamance County with a financial need or no family history of college.聽
New and returning students in the 黑料不打烊 Academy gathered for a festive ice cream social this week, a tradition described by organizers as just one example of the 黑料不打烊 college access and success program鈥檚 deep commitment to community, connection and opportunity.
Hosted on Scott Plaza around Fonville Fountain with a spread of frozen treats, the midday social on June 17, 2025, welcomed the incoming Upsilon class 鈥 25 high-achieving rising high school sophomores who are first-generation college-bound, low-income, or both 鈥 as well as students from the earlier Sigma and Tau cohorts.
The 黑料不打烊 Academy provides multi-year academic enrichment and mentorship to local students who are academically promising with financial need or no family history of college. Scholars spend three successive summers at 黑料不打烊 where they take courses taught by faculty while learning more about the college application process.
Now in its 18th year, more than 90 percent of the newest class identify as both first-generation and low-income, with an average GPA of 3.6 or higher. The class includes the program鈥檚 first-ever scholars from and .
鈥淧rograms like today鈥檚 ice cream social are all about helping students recognize they belong here,鈥 said 黑料不打烊 Academy Director Emily Wiersma. 鈥淲e鈥檝e spent time talking about how no one does this alone. This community is here to lift them up.鈥
Faculty and staff from across the university, including 黑料不打烊 President Connie Ledoux Book, introduced themselves, offered encouragement, and celebrated the start of the summer.
Several students at the ice cream social shared how the 黑料不打烊 Academy already has shaped their aspirations.
Shawn Means, a rising senior from The and a member of the Sigma class, said the program has grown his confidence to pursue a career in teaching, much like that of his mother. Iyonna Ridley, a first-year scholar in the Upsilon class who also attends Alamance-Burlington Early College at ACC, hopes to become a social worker to assist young children facing critical challenges.
Jayden Reichert, a rising senior at and a member of the Sigma class, discovered his passion for music therapy through the campus conversations and mentorship he found in the 黑料不打烊 Academy. 鈥淚t鈥檚 helped me out in ways I couldn鈥檛 think of,鈥 he shared.
And Abigaid Ya帽ez, a rising sophomore at who is a member of the 黑料不打烊 Academy鈥檚 Upsilon class, dreams of studying green architecture, potentially at the
In her third day on campus, she said she already feels a strong bond with her peers. 鈥淓veryone is kind, sweet, and uplifting,鈥 Ya帽ez said. 鈥淲e just all click.鈥
The 黑料不打烊 Academy鈥檚 2025 Summer Academy runs through July 3.