Staff Writer

The average age of diners in a University of New England cafeteria was lowered last week as a group of middle school students stopped by for a treat.

About 20 students from Middle School of the Kennebunks  visited the Biddeford university for an Aspirations Tour. The tour is designed to get youngsters thinking about higher education by talking with students and professors about the college experience.

Marie Hubbard, community mentoring program coordinator for UNE, said the mentoring program has paired university and public school students for more than 10 years. Mentors meet with Biddeford and Kennebunk students for an hour each week.

Participating schools include Biddeford Primary School, Biddeford Intermediate School, Biddeford Middle School, Middle School of the Kennebunks, Sea Road School in Kennebunk and Kennebunkport Consolidated School.

Hubbard said mentors and students spend a half-hour working on academic tasks and the second half-hour doing fun activities. She said schools chose students to participate “who could really benefit from this.”

Hubbard said students from Middle School of the Kennebunks were invited to spend part of a day at the Biddeford campus to learn about college life and opportunities available to them. About 50 middle school students took part in two tours during the past couple weeks.

The Aspirations Tour includes students who may already be thinking about college and others who haven’t considered future plans, Hubbard said.

“The point is to open their minds and get them thinking ‘OK, I can go to college,’” she said. “It helps them think about why college is important and why they need to buckle down in high school.”

After touring campus buildings, visiting the Marine Animal Rehabilitation Center and seeing a classroom, middle school students and mentors ate lunch together in the cafeteria. After lunch, sociology professor Dr. Sam McReynolds explained to students how they could benefit from college.

“It will make you a more interesting person,” he said.

He told students they will be asked to solve problems in the future and it is important they be prepared to contribute to the world around them.

“You can best do that by going to college,” he said.

McReynolds said students consider a number of factors when choosing a college, including cost, strength of programs and distance from home. He said it is important for students to find a school that is a good match for them.

Samantha Machado, 14, said visiting the university increased her excitement about exploring different college options.

“At first I never though of UNE as a college I might want to go to. I was blown away by the experience,” she said.

Machado said she was intrigued by the Marine Animal Rehabilitation Center because she is interested in studying ecology or biology. She said many middle school students are thinking about how to prepare themselves for college.

“I’ve been thinking about college since sixth grade. I try to give 110 percent because I know that’s my future,” she said.

Alexander Berry, 13, visited the university for the first time. He was interested to see “what college is all about,” he said.

“I thought it was really cool because I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to come here otherwise,” he said.

Like Machado, Berry said it is important to think about college as students transition from middle to high school.

“It will give you an idea of what classes you might want to take in high school,” he said.

Berry said it is helpful to talk directly to college students who will describe both the positives and negatives of going to college.

Nick Bush, 14, said it was “pretty cool” to walk around campus and talk to college students. He especially enjoyed eating lunch in the cafeteria.

“It was better than ours at school. It was a treat,” he said.

Ali Joyce, a UNE junior from Massachusetts majoring in medical biology, sat with a small group of middle school students to talk about her college experience. Students asked her how big her classes are, if she leaves campus and what it’s like to live with a roommate.

“You’d think living with a stranger would be difficult, but you both compromise,” she said.

Joyce said she enjoyed talking to the younger students about the university. Students were told the truth about college, which is an “eye-opening” experience, she said.

Joyce last year began mentoring when she worked with a student at the middle school. This year she works with an 11-year-old fifth-grade student from Sea Road School.

“I think it’s a great experience to get out there and help the community,” she said.

Staff Writer Gillian Graham can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 213.