The CLA curriculum starts after parents drop off their student. Participants will hear from engaging speakers and participate in activities within small groups. Each small group is paired with UA student facilitators, and Capstone Council members will provide mentorship throughout the program. Participants also have meals together and engage in fun down-time programming, too. CLA finishes with a closing ceremony, to which parents are invited. Participants will leave CLA with new friends, mentors, and equipped with tools they can employ to be effective and ethical leaders in their communities.

Parents are responsible for getting their students to and from Tuscaloosa. Once on campus, CLA takes care of all needed transportation.

Parents and participants will receive and email outlining times and locations for pick up and drop off. Please be sure students use a personal email address when filling out participation forms. If it is one week prior to CLA and you have not yet received this email, please contact: capstoneacademy@ua.edu.

Check in will be early afternoon on Thursday and check out will be late afternoon on Friday.

CLA uses a combination of UA student facilitators, UA Staff, and Capstone Council to provide supervision throughout the program. Additionally, participants should not be surprised to see UA security personnel while at CLA as they provide support and assistance. Participants, facilitators and staff are expected to wear nametags during all CLA activities.

Participants should wear school-appropriate clothing.

Thursday: Wear a t-shirt from your High School (or another shirt you choose)

Friday: Wear your CLA t-shirt (we will give you this)

• Clothing (see above for information about what to wear)
• Comfortable shoes for walking
• Pajamas
• Toiletries
• Snacks/drinks/refillable water bottle for your room or to carry with you in your bag
• Backpack/tote bag
• Notebook
• Pen/pencil
• Any needed medication with proper forms

Be cognizant of the weather and bring jackets/umbrellas as needed. Additionally, sometimes rooms on campus can be cool, so some students may want a sweater or sweatshirt.

Note that participants do not need to bring bedding or towels.  Each room will be furnished with these items.

Each participant will be assigned a roommate with which they will share a fully-furnished room containing two beds, a desk, a chair, a television, and a dresser.  Each room also has an en suite bathroom.  All bedding and towels are provided.

No. Access to rooms will not be available until the conclusion of Thursday's activities. Therefore, the program will securely store participants' luggage until the participants are able to go to their rooms.

Meals are provided for students. If a student would like a snack or drink to have with them during the day Thursday, they can pack it in their backpack/tote bag. If they would like snacks or drinks for their room or for Friday, they should pack it in their luggage. We have water bottle fillers throughout campus so students are welcome to bring a refillable water bottle.

Participants/parents will receive a form to fill out to note food allergies. If it is one week prior to CLA and you have not yet received this, please contact: capstoneacademy@ua.edu

Participants/their parents will receive a medicine management form to note all medications participants need to take. All medications must be noted on this form and the proper procedures must be followed. If it is one week prior to CLA and you have not yet receive this, please contact: capstoneacademy@ua.edu.

No, all meals and activities are free for participants. Vending/retail will be available for snacks and drinks beyond what is provided if students wish to bring money for this purpose. Many things on campus are cashless, but do accept Apple Pay and credit/debit cards. Participants will receive a CLA t-shirt, but there may be time in the schedule for interested students to purchase souvenirs from the campus bookstore.

Participants and their parents will be invited to informational Zoom sessions during February. For additional questions email capstoneacademy@ua.edu or call Melissa Snell at 205-348-3117.