High school students from C.W. Jefferys Collegiate Institute recently celebrated the completion of their co-op placement through York University's Advanced Credit Experience (ACE) program.
During the fall semester, high school students Julie Lee and Ayla Faion spent 220 hours with the Harriet Tubman Institute in order to complete the ACE program.
The students assisted with different tasks throughout the week and were instrumental in the digitization of historical material related to Caribana, a well-known Toronto festival recognized internationally.
This process allowed both young intellects to gain practical technical experience in camera equipment, computer software programming and scanning devices. Additional assignments included organizing Excel files, transcribing attendance and registration files for events, as well as editing images for the Sierra Leone Project, which is part of the British Library Endangered Archives Programme. Their success resulted in increasing the online resources for the Harriet Tubman Institute.
Both students excelled in advancing their knowledge of both the digital media and historical landscape.
“Being in a professional environment was intimidating at first, but the people at the institute made me feel welcomed throughout the entire experience," said Faion.
“Learning new things was something anyone could benefit from, especially how each day would involve different tasks that were challenging in ways that kept us extremely engaged," said Lee.
Both students said the Harriet Tubman Institute was a gratifying location for their field placement and they would recommend it to other students investigating options for co-op placements.
The students' enthusiasm and dedication was recognized at Tubman and at their high school. Lee is an honour roll student, and Faion has been recognized for having the highest mark in math.
The Tubman Institute said it is proud to have been able to provide an environment that excited both Grade 12 students for their future endeavours in life outside of high school.
Story written by Fernanda Fer, Tubman student associate