This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Staff writer

Hundreds of children hit the books, perfected new skills and explored virgin territory when the annual Kid U/College for Kids and Teens took to the classrooms at Anoka-Ramsey Community College in July.

After a morning of watercolor brush stroking, Aliyah and Micah Givand exhibit original works of art they created in Anoka-Ramsey Community College’s Kid U Painting Pizzazz class July 20. Photo by Sue Austreng

The program provides its young students will opportunities for learning success in a college environment and is geared for students age four to 18 years old.

Like real college students, Kid U participants enrolled in courses of interest and took classes on campus at ARCC.

Kid U offered courses in the fine arts and performance, science, culinary arts, languages, fitness, debate, problem solving and more.

And the young students seemed to find summertime learning quite satisfactory.

“This is the greatest thing ever,” said one student as she and her Kid U classmates walked across campus following their Science of Ancient Egypt class.

The 2010 roster of Kid U classes marks the 16th year of courses offered in the College for Kids program.

All of the more than six dozen courses are taught by instructors who are specialists in their field.

This year’s roster of Kid U instructors includes ARCC professors, professional artists, stage directors and chefs, Minnesota Science Museum and Underwater Adventures staff and more.

With scholarships offered by the Medtronic Foundation, students who qualified for free or reduced lunch during the 2009-2010 school year were eligible for scholarship assistance for Kid U classes.  

Kid U courses this year were offered Monday through Thursday over three separate summertime weeks: July 12-15 on ARCC’s Cambridge campus; July 19-22 and July 26-29 on the Coon Rapids campus.

The following groups and organizations served as co-sponsors and partners of 2010 Kid U:

Anoka Children’s Theatre, Anoka-Hennepin School District, Cambridge-Isanti School District, St. Francis Independent School District, Medtronic Foundation, Minnesota Zoo, Science Explorers, Science Museum of Minnesota, Skyhawks Sports Academy and Underwater Adventures.

Sue Austreng is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it