Town-gown marriage in Worcester possible model for A-B

Here's the TAB's overview of the Allston/Brighton visit to Clark University last week. Jack Foley, Clark's Vice President for Government and Community Affairs, was a wonderful host for our visit and he generously took significant time to spend with us and his pride and commitment to the Worcester neighborhood was visible throughout.

This story from Clark's alumni magazine is a few years old, but its description matches what we saw on our visit to University Park Campus School, the grade 7-12 school that is the result of "an innovative collaboration between Clark and the Worcester Public Schools."

"The Clark involvement has made this school what it is. The kids here see Clark as part of this school," says Principal Rodrigues, who credits the University with helping UPCS students understand the importance of a college education. "These students don't just think college, they've been living college since seventh grade. They're like little Clarkies.

Clark undergraduates staff the after-school homework center and provide tutoring. Graduate students complete their teaching practica there. Faculty members teach special seminars at UPCS, and alumni participate in a mentoring program for UPCS students. Many UPCS teachers Rodrigues notes, are Clark graduates, who invite their former professors to the school.

In addition, UPCS students regularly visit the Clark campus. They attend special seminars at Clark, eat meals in the dining hall and use the athletic facilities. Some have even taken courses at Clark for college credit.

One of the many things that impressed me is that Clark is proud to have its alumni directly donate money to the University Park Campus School to support its operation. One could imagine that this money might otherwise be given to the university and a more inwardly-focused university would view this as a diversion of resources. But Jack Foley explained that Clark considers UPCS to be part of Clark, and its success is Clark's success. So Clark is happy to have its alumni supporting its joint venture with the community and Worcester Public Schools.