East House College Enrichment Program opens June 6

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Monroe Community College President Anne Kress is the keynote speaker for the East House College Enrichment Program graduation ceremony.

Forty participants of East House Education and Employment Services will take part in a two-week college enrichment experience June 6-9 and June 13-16 at Rochester Institute of Technology. The experience is designed to augment other treatment and rehabilitation services and to encourage participants who are recovering from mental illness or substance use disorders to pursue educational goals to achieve independence and self-sufficiency.

Participants attend a variety of classes including academic, art therapy and physical fitness classes taught by RIT and Monroe Community College staff and faculty, East House staff, and professionals from a variety of community organizations. Participants are also able to utilize RIT’s facilities during the two weeks of the program including classrooms, computer labs, the library, the student life center and the gym.

Each component of the program mimics a college experience from applying for school, raising funds for the experience, an orientation, course selection and registration, attending classes, eating lunch on campus, homework assignments and graduation.

At the end of the two weeks, students participate in a graduation ceremony and reception. This year’s event takes place at 4 p.m. on Thursday, June 16, in Ingle Auditorium in the Student Alumni Union at RIT. The keynote speaker for the event will be Monroe Community College President Anne Kress.

Since 1996, more than 500 students have benefited from the East House College Enrichment educational program series. Many have gone on to earn their TASC—Test Assessing Secondary Completion—a national high school equivalency assessment, or enroll in local colleges.

Contact Michelle Lanphear for more information about the event at 585-475-4329 or mllgrl@rit.edu.