Griffin Tighe, a junior policy studies major at Syracuse University, needed extra credits last spring. Bill Coplin, director of the public affairs program, offered him credit to assist the policy class at Henninger High School.

Not long after, Tighe began offering his own after school class to teach students Microsoft Excel.

“Professor Coplin challenged me to create something sustainable — something that would last beyond my time here,” Tighe said. “That was the inspiration for me. I knew this was my chance to make a real difference on campus and in the community.”

The Maxwell Volunteer Project, or MVP, which started at the beginning of the spring semester, has since added two more classes and several student volunteers who are currently working in the city schools. Tighe now acts as the director of programs. His involvement still includes helping Joyce Suslovic, a teacher at Henninger, and teaching high school students public policy skills.

“The best part of this program is teaching students to make a difference in the world,” he said. “The students at Henninger have accomplished more than most adult citizens. Real change happens in the Syracuse community thanks to them.”

The students’ most recent accomplishment includes adding Indigenous Peoples Day to the Henninger academic calendar.

Among the challenges faced by the Maxwell Volunteer Project faces are the language, cultural, financial and geographical barriers between volunteers and students. Courtesy of Maxwell Volunteer Project

Shortly after Tighe created MVP, Sophia Lamendola and Canela Corrales, both policy studies majors, joined the program. They oversee two of the after school classes this semester.

On Mondays, they teach career exploration, and on Thursdays they teach college preparation. The career class focuses on writing resumes and job searches, while the college prep class focuses on introducing the students to the college application process. Each class lasts five weeks and then the program restarts, with about 20 to 30 students per class.

The other members that make up the MVP are George Rose, the program coordinator for New York State Regents Examinations prep, and Jack Schlosser, who teaches the Microsoft Excel class. Rose oversees MVP’s volunteers and Regents prep tutoring. He is a native of Liverpool, N.Y. and knows how difficult the Regents exams can be.

“It is very rewarding to help high school students pass some of the hardest exams in New York,” Rose said.

The biggest challenges facing MVP include the language, cultural, financial and geographical barriers. With only two or three volunteers teaching twenty students, MVP helps students who need extra assistance or who do not speak any English. It is also difficult to get transportation for volunteers and for students lacking funding.

“There’s a certain drive to the Henninger students that I didn’t see at my high school back home,” Lamendola said. “The fact that these students are so excited to stay after school to get jobs, apply to college and learn Microsoft Excel, things that most kids consider boring and take for granted, is my favorite part.”

Corrales said she can relate to the Henninger students. She came to the United States at a young age and struggled with similar issues, like her parents not speaking English and not having resources.

“If I would have had a program like this, it would have been super helpful,” Corrales said. “I had to fill out my own Common App and FAFSA. My favorite part is getting to give back and getting to help students in a way that I wish I would have been helped.”

Next semester, the students plan to add another class focused on debate and public policy, and are seeking more volunteers. The group said they would like to provide these classes at high schools all around the Syracuse area.

“It’s going to be great to say one day that Syracuse University has a good relationship with the community, because that’s the goal here, to link the community and the university,” Tighe said.

Published on October 17, 2017 at 11:22 pm