Boston, MA – June 30, 2008 – The Colleges of the Fenway (COF) has been named the first and only university-based Boston EnvironMentor’s chapter by the National Council of Science and the Environment (NCSE) for the 2008-2009 year. EnvironMentors is a national college access program that prepares high school students from underrepresented minorities for college degree programs in environmental and related science fields. Wentworth Institute of Technology is playing a lead role in the newly formed chapter as professor and environmental science program coordinator Jack Duggan is serving as chapter director.

The new chapter is built on a partnership between Wentworth Institute of Technology and Odyssey High School, the City of Boston’s environmental-focused high school. Approximately 30 Odyssey High students will participate in the EnvironMentors program through a project-based environmental technology course.

The new EnvironMentors chapter reinforces the commitment of the COF joint Environmental Science Program towards providing excellence in environmental science education. Minority high school students will be matched with college and university faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, and science and environmental professionals, in mentoring relationships. Working together, students and mentors will develop rigorous environmental science research projects over the course of the academic year.

“The Colleges of the Fenway chapter for EnvironMentors is an exciting opportunity to attract and inspire underrepresented high school students to pursue academic programs and careers in the fast growing field of environmental science,” said Duggan. “Students and the participating colleges will benefit from the program as it fosters a learning environment in an area of great interest for all involved and may lead to interesting findings that can be further developed.”

The Colleges of the Fenway chapter is one of two newly appointment chapters for the 2008-2009 year; the other chapter being University of California, Davis. The new chapters have national significance as the total number of chapters for 2008-2009 is only four, and the Colleges of the Fenway chapter represents the first and only Boston chapter.

EnvironMentors
EnvironMentors prepares under-represented high school students for college degree programs in environmental, natural resources, and other related science fields. Founded in Washington, DC in 1992, EnvironMentors joined the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE) in 2006 to expand the program and create new chapters at colleges and universities across the country. EnvironMentors matches high school students from university-based chapters in one-to-one mentoring relationships. With the support of the mentors, students develop experimental science research projects on environmental topics borne of their own interest. Students who participate in EnvironMentors gain valuable research and writing experience that serves them in their future endeavors. More information can be accessed at http://ncseonline.org/EnvironMentors/

Colleges of the Fenway
Colleges of the Fenway (http://www.colleges-fenway.org/) is a collaborative effort of six neighboring Boston-based colleges in the Fenway area. This collaboration was created to add value to student academic and social life while seeking innovative methods of investing in new services and containing the costs of higher education. Collectively, the colleges represent more than 11,400 undergraduate students, comprising 16.2% of the total Boston population of undergraduates attending four-year colleges, more than 700 full-time faculty and 2,300 course offerings.

Wentworth Institute of Technology
Founded in 1904, Wentworth Institute of Technology is an independent, co-educational nationally ranked institution offering career-focused education through 15 Bachelor degree programs in areas such as architecture, computer science and systems, construction management, design, engineering, engineering technology, environmental science, and management. For over a century, Wentworth has been a leader in technical education known for its academic excellence, community service, and support for the economic growth of the region. For more information, please visit www.wit.edu.