East End middle schoolers visit SBU to see if college is right for them

Stony Brook University’s Future Scholars and Leaders Program has expanded its outreach to middle school students on Long Island’s East End. The initiative targets first-generation college applicants to introduce them to campus resources before they graduate from high school.

More than 60 eighth and ninth graders visited the Stony Brook campus recently. They participated in activities designed to demonstrate the social and academic aspects of university life. The program, based in Stony Brook Southampton, aims to reduce barriers for students from East End communities who might not otherwise consider attending college.

Karissa Raynor, the program coordinator, stated that the experience helps demystify the college process. She noted that the visit instills a sense of belonging among students who may have previously thought higher education was beyond their reach. The students toured the campus, attended a football game, and met with current university students to learn about campus clubs.

A central component of the visit involved the Paul W. Zuccaire Gallery at the Staller Center for the Arts. Volunteers from Omega Phi Beta Sorority Inc., Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc., and Jubilé Latino guided the scholars across campus. At the gallery, the students viewed the exhibition “Noel W Anderson: Black Excellence.” The display examines the history of Black achievement and the institutional challenges that have accompanied it.

Gallery Manager Georgia LaMair Tomczak and student staff member Gilana Etame led the tour. Etame encouraged the students to interpret the artist’s use of distorted tapestries. The discussion included the historical context of the cotton gin and the Jacquard loom. The students learned that cotton production per enslaved person increased from approximately five pounds a day to 50 pounds a day after the invention of the gin. They also learned that the Jacquard loom, patented in 1804, allowed unskilled workers to produce complex patterns rapidly.

The scholars then participated in a junior curator activity. Each group selected at least five images from online collections of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and MoMA. They created themed exhibitions on large sheets of paper, imagining them as gallery walls. Student groups chose themes such as “Black Unity: Looking Out for One Another” and “We’re Equal: No Matter What Race We Are, We Are All the Same.”

Zoe Haffner, a student mentor for the program, observed that the gallery visit provided an immersive experience for the scholars. She noted that the students handled sensitive topics with grace and maturity. The day concluded with the students cheering at a Stony Brook football game. They interacted with the university mascot, who signed their rally towels.

The program will continue connecting scholars with university faculty, staff, and students throughout the upcoming academic year. These interactions are intended to help participants expand their social networks and discover academic interests. At the Zuccaire Gallery, the current exhibition will close before “Material Interventions: New Faculty Exhibition 2026” opens on November 4, 2026. That exhibition will run through February 26, 2027, featuring six new Art Department faculty members. Student exhibitions are scheduled to open in March and May of 2027.