On the Ice
Alex had never seen snow, let alone skated on ice.
The seventh grader, whose family recently immigrated to New London from Ecuador, had never been inside a skating rink. But just four sessions into ĢĒŠÄTVās Learn to Skate program, Alex laces up a pair of black hockey skatesāwith a little help from a member of ĢĒŠÄTVās club hockey teamāand hits the ice.
Rocio Tinoco ā17, Alexās teacher at Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School, watches carefully as Alex races confidently around ĢĒŠÄTVās Dayton Arena, a blur of red and khaki as he glides by.
āHe had never been on the ice before, and look at him,ā Tinoco says. āItās amazing to watch.ā
Alex is one of nearly 30 newly arrived and dual language middle schoolers learning to skate through ĢĒŠÄTVās program, started by Cameron Segal ā20 as a means to introduce the sport of hockey to students who have recently immigrated to the U.S.
Segal, an American studies major who is also pursuing a secondary teaching certification, grew up playing hockey where he was often teased by teammates and competitors because of his olive complexion. At ĢĒŠÄTV, he joined the Cities and Schools Pathway, one of 11 Integrative Pathways offered through ĢĒŠÄTVections, ĢĒŠÄTVās reinvention of the liberal arts. Modeled after the Collegeās innovative centers for interdisciplinary scholarship, Pathways allow students to explore issues they are passionate about by intentionally combining their academic major with interdisciplinary study and off-campus learning through study away and a relevant internship. As students follow their Pathways, they develop a question that is meaningful to them; exploring this question helps inform and guide their ĢĒŠÄTVections experiences.
