The third graders who attend Carver Elementary School in St. Louis aren’t just looking forward to summer break. No, they’re setting their sights further down the road.
During College Week this past October, the students in Rachel Rubenstein’s ’14 class — along with the entire Carver Elementary student body — were immersed in what college is like, why earning a degree is important, and what it takes to get admitted.
But Rubenstein, who was placed at Carver through Teach for America (an organization whose mission is to eliminate educational inequity), wanted to give her students an extra taste of what college life is like. So she turned to the most spirited school she knows: her alma mater.
“I couldn't be prouder of the world-class education I received at the UW,” said Rubenstein. “In my family, being a Badger is a tradition. I've had a relative graduate from the university each decade since the 1960s. I even had Babcock ice cream at my first birthday!”
That dedication, and those credentials, warranted more than the usual Badger gear. So, courtesy of the Wisconsin Alumni Association, past editions of The Red Shirt™ came out of retirement and were sent to Rubenstein’s class to inspire and excite these college-bound Badgers of the future.