by Andrew Alonzo | aalonzo@claremont-courier.com

Pitzer College will again offer its long-running summer enrichment program Project Think to pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students.

Project Think had been a mainstay at Pitzer since 1980 but was canceled in 2020, 2021 and 2022 due to COVID-19.

Two three-week sessions will meet Monday through Friday, from June 20 to July 7, and July 10-28. Classes will be closed June 19 for Juneteenth, and July 4. Project Think offers courses on geographic information systems coding, creative writing, animal science, and other science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics-based topics.

Susan Warren, director and co-founder of Project Think, right, with Scripps College sophomore Keeana Villamar, coordinator of communications and social media and events. Courier photo/Andrew Alonzo

Each day is broken up into two sessions: a core morning program for all at 8:30 a.m., and a 3 p.m. enrichment class where students dive deep into a specific topic such as swimming, visual and performing arts, and Spanish. Fees are $480 per core session. Prices vary for enrichment classes. Morning daycare begins at 7 a.m. and goes until 8:30 a.m. Afternoon daycare is offered from 3 to 6 p.m. Daycare is $100 per week. More information is at projectthink.com/copy-of-enroll-now.

“The main focus of course is to engage and stimulate young children from 4 to 14 years old,” said Susan Warren, director, and co-founder of Project Think. “We wanted kids to want to learn and get so excited about doing research and delving in to learning that they couldn’t wait to get up the next morning and go to Project Think or to go home.”

Local college and high school volunteers, as well as certified teachers and graduate students becoming instructors, help facilitate programs. About 250 students registered for both three-week sessions in 2019, Warren said.

Keeana Villamar, a Scripps College sophomore and the coordinator of communications and social media and events for Project Think, is excited for students to learn about the mystery animals of the week. Every Friday, students will get to meet a creature they’ve been learning about during the week. In the past, students have gone face to face with wolves, pigs, chickens, goats, alpacas, snakes, and exotic birds.

“Now that I see these experiences, I want to do everything I can to push it forward and make sure other kids have these experiences as well,” said Villamar, a first-generation college student.

More info is at projectthink.com, via email to info@projectthink.com, or by calling (909) 717-7848. Space is limited.