College 4 Kids give Students a Chance to Learn and Connect with Knox

The Knox College 4 Kids program continued its growth and community outreach earlier this month, offering a variety of interactive, fun courses for Galesburg-area students during the two-week summer enrichment program. This summer, 300 students ranging from first through eighth grade participated in the camp, which is led by 31 instructors and 33 fellows and aims to give community students a chance to use skills learned in school while exploring subjects beyond the traditional curriculum.

“When we use the term enrichment program, we’re not using it in a gatekeeping-type way; our goal is to provide a curriculum that expands school as usual,” saidAssistant Professor of Educational Studies and Director of Teacher Education Mary Lyons, who leads the enrichment program. “Kids have their foundations in reading and writing and their foundations in math, so when they come to College 4 Kids, they might take a video production class where they apply those foundational skills into an extended class.

While instructors and fellows lead the courses, student input in both course selection and direction remains a key factor in the program’s success.

“The kids are in an active role in most of these classes,” Lyons said.  “They are applying their foundational skills into a new outlet. The kids opt in, they choose their classes, they can have choice in their class, then we can let them choose what they get out of it and give them empowerment in the program.”

Knox on Display

The program offers many options, letting students explore diverse interests while using Knox College facilities. Students could take STEM courses in the Maker’s Space inside Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center (SMC). They could join music and theatre activities in the Ford Center for the Fine Arts. Inside Whitcomb Art Center (WAC), students could paint, sculpt, or draw. Knox Farm and Green Oaks provided opportunities to connect with nature. The Wilson House offered a cooking course. Students could play field games on the track. South Lawn served as a meeting space before and between courses for students to relax and build community.

“You can touch every corner of campus,” Lyons said. “It’s important to offer a wide range and fully showcase the facilities. We link back to the campus by spending time on South Lawn in front of Old Main, giving students a sense of the traditions here and how we build connections. We spent passing periods every day on South Lawn, then held a culminating event with families on the last days to highlight what makes Knox special.”

On the final day, students' families and friends were invited to campus not only to participate in the College 4 Kids Pumphandle but also to observe the students' work and the enrichment program's offerings.

“We do a learning story exhibit on the track; we have one for every class. It lets families learn what their own kid is doing, but also see widely what the program is doing,” Lyons said. “It also gives kids an idea about something they may want to take next year. We really want to show off campus but also build a sense of what is going on in the program.”

Community Partners

As with any community outreach program, having active community partners is key to offering and growing it. This year was no different, with Galesburg Community School District 205 sponsoring scholarships for its students.

“I do think the full tuition partnership with District 205 is our key source of recruitment of participants and also advertising,” Lyons said. “Every family in District 205 gets a notification of the program and its accessibility. Year over year, we have families returning, then a few more decide to try it out. About 80 percent of our youth participants are District 205 students, and 20 percent are kids from surrounding communities or kids who are in Galesburg for the summer, visiting family, grandparents, etc. They plan those vacations around College 4 Kids, which is really cool.”

The program also has plenty of help from other community members and businesses, which continue to make the summer enrichment program a success.

“Go Van Gogh’s, Azer Clinic, and 156 Bar and Grill gave very generously to the program with the t-shirts,” Lyons said. “CBI Bank & Trust, who has given every year, the Bayer Family Community Advancement Fund and Gallagher Partners have given every year for the last three years. John’s Plumbing and Cooling, they are literally a block away from campus; Purlee Farms is a local farm operation that has ties to the community. 

“There’s a new emerging non-profit in town called the Fairest Wheel, and that came in with in-kind donations for the bike class. One of their goals was to make sure there are tool sets for every kid, so when the kids brought their bikes they wouldn’t have limited access to the tools they needed.” 

Also, for the second year in a row, Ameren presented the program with a grant.

As always, the goal of the program is for kids to have fun while also learning, and for Lyons, the instructors, fellows, and students, it was mission accomplished.

“There’s a lot of social interaction, collaboration, a sense of community and relationship building that is different and builds upon what kids are coming with,” Lyons said. “They have a foundation from school and we’re trying to enrich their learning through a wide-range of offerings that build on the foundation and put the students into an active role. I think that is a strength of the program and why we think it can continue to grow.”

Published on July 30, 2026

- Scott Holland, Knox College Office of Communications