Anderson University's summer camps aim to steer youth to 'college

Jun. 9—ANDERSON — A garage-sized studio in a building near Reardon Auditorium served as a base this week for nearly two dozen prospective filmmakers at Anderson University.

The students — mostly high schoolers or recent high school graduates — sat in folding chairs around a makeshift set. Discussions among them and several guest instructors ranged from composing shots — wide angle, two-person, close-ups and others — to making them more eye-catching for viewers.

In one corner of the room, Jack Lugar looked on with interest. A professor of cinema and media arts and the leader of the university's film program, he said later that at least some of the students at the Filmmakers Camp are likely to end up back on campus in a few years.

"It's a unique major, and it's not always top-of-mind for certain students," Lugar said. "They love some of this stuff, but don't really know that there's a (cinema and media arts) major, and they don't know that it's here at AU."

The university's summer camps serve as informal academic and athletic speed dating services of sorts, officials say. The camps allow potential students and their would-be instructors to get to know one another in a compressed period of time and, university leaders hope, expand the pipeline of eventual undergraduates who will populate the campus in the next decade.

"We know through research that the more you introduce youth to college campuses — especially youth that may be first generation (college attendees) and not as familiar with campuses — that they become more familiar and comfortable with that environment," said Stephanie Moran, senior advisor for strategic partnerships at Anderson University.

Moran said this summer's camp lineup — planned to address academic and professional disciplines including filmmaking, music business, dance, and science, technology, engineering and math courses — was formulated with both affordability and younger students in mind. Some camps, including the school's annual Genius Camp later this month, will include students as young as 8, a nod to promoting what Moran calls a "college-going mentality" as early as elementary school.

"We want them to begin to see themselves as students on these campuses," she said.

Another camp, geared toward middle schoolers, will include content focused on topics including anti-bullying, leadership and character development and mental health concepts, according to Moran. The Youth Leadership Academy will co-host the camp, which is expecting between 50 and 75 young people to participate.

"We all know that youth have lots of challenges in front of them, and we're just hoping that this camp can help address — at least in a small way — some encouragement in youth development," Moran said.

The camps, she added, also allow AU to collaborate and deepen relationships with a variety of community partners. Registration for the Genius Camp, for example, is being handled through the City of Anderson Parks Department, which will also provide transportation to campus during camp week.

"We saw this partnership as a fantastic opportunity to give our city kids a great university experience," said Alecia Davis, community center director for the City of Anderson. "Many of these kids have never been to this wonderful campus right in our own back yard."

Follow Andy Knight on Twitter @Andrew_J_Knight, or call 765-640-4809.