About
The DDC DREAM Act project explores the many challenges and opportunities facing immigrants as they pursue higher education in America. The project was organized and implemented by participants in the Teagle-DDC Freedom and Citizenship Seminar program of 2011-2012. Beginning in fall 2011, these 15 New York City high school students began conducting interviews, writing fact sheets, and forming their own opinions about the need for the passage of federal and state-level DREAM Acts. For six months, students researched and interviewed to bring together the information that can be found throughout this website.
What is the DDC?
DDC began in the 1960s with Columbia College students who were determined to have their university reach out to the world outside Columbia’s gates. It was an era of great student activism on campus and DDC was born out of the realization that Columbia students and University officials needed to share experiences with Harlem and surrounding communities.
It was created as “Project Double Discovery” in 1965 through the collaboration of faculty, administrators, and students working to create a successful proposal for federal funding. Columbia University was awarded one of eighteen pilot programs which brought over 200 low-income high school students to the Columbia campus for summer academic programming. The response was overwhelming. Over the years, “Project Double Discovery” evolved into the Double Discovery Center and is now a department of Columbia College, from which it draws a majority of its volunteers and staff members.
The Center now serves over 1,000 low-income and first generation college-bound New York City youth each year in grades 7 through 12. It houses two youth education programs, Talent Search and Upward Bound. Through these programs, students learn about colleges and careers, improve their academic work, and participate in personal development activities.
What is the Teagle-DDC Freedom and Citizenship Seminar?
The Freedom and Citizenship seminar was initiated in summer 2009 by Columbia University’s American Studies Program, in partnership with the Double Discovery Center (DDC), an outreach organization that brings low-income high school students to the Columbia campus for academic tutoring and college guidance. The program is supported by a major grant from the Teagle Foundation as part of its effort to promote partnerships between liberal arts institutions and community-based organizations. The seminar was designed to expose talented DDC students to an academically rigorous college seminar taught by Columbia faculty. The texts for the seminar were drawn from the Columbia College Core Curriculum and covered the themes of freedom and citizenship in ancient Greece, the European Enlightenment, and 20th Century America. Authors ranged from Plato and Aristotle to John Locke, Abraham Lincoln, and W.E. B. Du Bois.
The Teagle Project
In addition to the Freedom and Citizenship seminar, students participate in a hands-on, year-long component to the program in a effort to both put into practice and to explore the themes and ideas introduced in the seminar. Last year's group created a website documenting the founding and history of the Double Discovery Center at Columbia University.
Who We Are
DDC-American Studies “Freedom and Citizenship” Program
Center for American Studies staff:
Professor Casey N. Blake, Director
Professor Roosevelt Montás, Seminar Instructor
Jessica Lee, Graduate Coordinator
Joe Daly, Undergraduate Teaching Fellow
Patrick Lawlor, Undergraduate Teaching Felllow
Maria Lomaka, Undergraduate Teaching Fellow
Double Discovery Center staff:
Kevin Matthews, Executive Director
Emily Ford, Assistant Director, Talent Search Program
Natalie Cortez, Counselor, Talent Search Program
Students:
Zhane Burns, Camille Fernandez, Frieda Adu-Brenpong, Julia Harding, Davon Blanks, Jessica Pelaez, Catherine Romero, Oriana Elisa Gonzales, Catherine Mejía, Jean Franco Diaz, Susan Tsui, Christina Xie, Emily Abreu, Christopher Williams, Kirssis Arias
Acknowledgments
Our sincere thanks to Andrew Delbanco, Director, and Angela Darling, Assistant Director, of Columbia’s Center for American Studies. We want to extend a warm thanks to our gracious interviewees, Alina Das, Nancy Mata, Gabriel Aldana, Yessica Abrajan, Alyshia Gálvez, and Vishal Mistry.
The DDC DREAM Act project explores the many challenges and opportunities facing immigrants as they pursue higher education in America. The project was organized and implemented by participants in the Teagle-DDC Freedom and Citizenship Seminar program of 2011-2012. Beginning in fall 2011, these 15 New York City high school students began conducting interviews, writing fact sheets, and forming their own opinions about the need for the passage of federal and state-level DREAM Acts. For six months, students researched and interviewed to bring together the information that can be found throughout this website.
What is the DDC?
DDC began in the 1960s with Columbia College students who were determined to have their university reach out to the world outside Columbia’s gates. It was an era of great student activism on campus and DDC was born out of the realization that Columbia students and University officials needed to share experiences with Harlem and surrounding communities.
It was created as “Project Double Discovery” in 1965 through the collaboration of faculty, administrators, and students working to create a successful proposal for federal funding. Columbia University was awarded one of eighteen pilot programs which brought over 200 low-income high school students to the Columbia campus for summer academic programming. The response was overwhelming. Over the years, “Project Double Discovery” evolved into the Double Discovery Center and is now a department of Columbia College, from which it draws a majority of its volunteers and staff members.
The Center now serves over 1,000 low-income and first generation college-bound New York City youth each year in grades 7 through 12. It houses two youth education programs, Talent Search and Upward Bound. Through these programs, students learn about colleges and careers, improve their academic work, and participate in personal development activities.
What is the Teagle-DDC Freedom and Citizenship Seminar?
The Freedom and Citizenship seminar was initiated in summer 2009 by Columbia University’s American Studies Program, in partnership with the Double Discovery Center (DDC), an outreach organization that brings low-income high school students to the Columbia campus for academic tutoring and college guidance. The program is supported by a major grant from the Teagle Foundation as part of its effort to promote partnerships between liberal arts institutions and community-based organizations. The seminar was designed to expose talented DDC students to an academically rigorous college seminar taught by Columbia faculty. The texts for the seminar were drawn from the Columbia College Core Curriculum and covered the themes of freedom and citizenship in ancient Greece, the European Enlightenment, and 20th Century America. Authors ranged from Plato and Aristotle to John Locke, Abraham Lincoln, and W.E. B. Du Bois.
The Teagle Project
In addition to the Freedom and Citizenship seminar, students participate in a hands-on, year-long component to the program in a effort to both put into practice and to explore the themes and ideas introduced in the seminar. Last year's group created a website documenting the founding and history of the Double Discovery Center at Columbia University.
Who We Are
DDC-American Studies “Freedom and Citizenship” Program
Center for American Studies staff:
Professor Casey N. Blake, Director
Professor Roosevelt Montás, Seminar Instructor
Jessica Lee, Graduate Coordinator
Joe Daly, Undergraduate Teaching Fellow
Patrick Lawlor, Undergraduate Teaching Felllow
Maria Lomaka, Undergraduate Teaching Fellow
Double Discovery Center staff:
Kevin Matthews, Executive Director
Emily Ford, Assistant Director, Talent Search Program
Natalie Cortez, Counselor, Talent Search Program
Students:
Zhane Burns, Camille Fernandez, Frieda Adu-Brenpong, Julia Harding, Davon Blanks, Jessica Pelaez, Catherine Romero, Oriana Elisa Gonzales, Catherine Mejía, Jean Franco Diaz, Susan Tsui, Christina Xie, Emily Abreu, Christopher Williams, Kirssis Arias
Acknowledgments
Our sincere thanks to Andrew Delbanco, Director, and Angela Darling, Assistant Director, of Columbia’s Center for American Studies. We want to extend a warm thanks to our gracious interviewees, Alina Das, Nancy Mata, Gabriel Aldana, Yessica Abrajan, Alyshia Gálvez, and Vishal Mistry.