Senior Lecturer on Education, Co-Faculty Director, Human Development and Psychology, and Faculty Director, Making Caring Common, Harvard Graduate School of Education
This workshop follows the keynote address by Angel B. Pérez, Vice President for Enrollment and Student Success at Trinity College and eloquent advocate for opening doors for disadvantaged youth through elevating non-academic factors in admission. Angel Pérez, along with the other panelists, is a member of a national initiative, the Character Collaborative, that is advancing the use of character factors in admission practice. The panelists will present on: 1) enduring realities of college admission that deter opening doors of opportunity; 2) the growth of a character movement in admission; 3) emerging practices and tools in assessing character attributes; and 4) examples of programs and standards of good practice that are changing the landscape of admission. Recognizing the experience and insights of the audience, the panel will seek comments, questions, and concerns about the goal of elevating character criteria in admission and ideas and suggestions for advancing this goal. Audience contributions will be collected and reported back following the conference.
Guiding Questions:
1) Do you perceive that elevating character criteria in admission will help promising youth who might not otherwise be admissible to a college of their choice?
2) Do you know youth who may have a less-than-ideal academic profile but have personal attributes that predict success in college, work, and life?
3) Would you like to hear about strategies and tools for increasing access to higher education by elevating character criteria in admission?