We are excited that you are interested in becoming a State College Peer Advocate. The Summer Institute will take place at State High from June 22th-26th, 2020 from 8:30am-5:30pm. Accepted students must be able to attend the entire 5 day institute.

What is the Social Justice Summer Institute? Office of Diversity and Inclusivity, in conjunction with SCASD and Penn State College of Education, is developing a week-long summer institute/program to train a select group of students as peer advocates within State High and Delta High School. Students who are accepted into the institute will receive training in a variety of areas and will apply their training in order to work as peer advocates throughout the following school year. Topics covered throughout the program include: cross-cultural competence, basic counseling skills, public speaking and facilitation skills, leadership development and etiquette, and professionalism. We will accept 30 students (10 from each grade level beginning with sophomores) from State High and 3 from each grade starting with 9th grade from Delta as peer advocates for the summer institute and following school year.

What is a peer advocate? Students who participate in the summer institute will be identified as peer advocates during the fall and spring semesters, and will be expected to support fellow students in the following ways:

- Point of contact for students who need assistance in addressing interpersonal issues with fellow students and            teachers/staff
- Educate peers on matters related to culture, identity, equity, and social justice
- Liaison for teachers/administrators and peers in resolving challenging issues
- Provide support and advocacy for students struggling with various issues within the academic environment
- Conduct selves as a leader and representative of the school in public and private sectors.

In addition to this application, please provide a minimum of one letter of recommendation. Letters can come from an adult who has come to know you well (a teacher, school administrator, community member) or a peer. If you are submitting a letter from a peer, your peer should be able to explain why you would be an effective peer advocate.

Letters of recommendation can be emailed to Dr. Chatters at sjc22@scasd.org or submitted to https://tinyurl.com/SCASDRecommend.

Please complete the below application to be considered for the Summer Institute and peer mentor role for the 2020-2021 academic school year. The deadline for submission is March 15th, 2020 at 5pm.

You may contact Deanna Burgess (dlb28@scasd.org) or Dr. Chatters (scasdequity@scasd.org) for any questions or concerns.