With their hands raised eagerly in the air, 170 schoolkids yelled, “I want to go to college!”

Their voices and energy flooded Jack Adams Hall earlier this week as kids from four different San Francisco schools participated in the Project Connect’s early outreach program, which aims at encouraging youth from historically underserved communities to go to college.

“When I was a kid, I didn’t know what college was,” said ASI President Chris Jackson in one of the opening speeches. “Now, some might say that college is for nerds, college is for dorks. Well then, I’m the biggest dork around.”

Jackson then proceed to interest the kids in a quiz about SF State using dollar bills as the prizes. The kids were very enthusiastic and some just kept their hands raised in between questions.

The day filled with speeches, workshops, a giant alligator, and for some students, a tour of the dorms.

“We’re very excited for this opportunity,” said Maurice Harper, the assistant principal of Willie L. Brown Academy, one of the participating schools. Harper said Project Connect is helping kids to realize that college is possible.

The day started with presentations from ASI members, and a cultural dance performance by the only second graders in the bunch, students from Glen Park elementary. Then the groups broke up and attended seven different workshops all around campus.

There were seven workshops total and the topics ranged from chemistry and sign language, to Taekwondo. Each workshop was led by student volunteers and instructors.

In the chemistry workshop, kids were able to build molecule models, experiment with acids and basics, and even make slime.

“We put in some kind of chemicals and then we stirred it for a few minutes,” said 10-year-old Marcus, who didn’t think slime-making was very hard at all.

“It’s been really cool, said volunteer Netty Nguyen, 23, a senior majoring in biochemistry. She had been having kids guess different scents.

“They’re really smart. Some of them get it right away,” Nguyen said. “And they’re cute.”

At Burk Hall students from Jose Ortega Elemtary school learned sign language while in the gym, E.R. Taylor elementary school students were getting in shape.

“It broke my toe,” said 11-year-old Angel, who was kicking around a soccer ball.

Angel and her classmates were almost speechless when they entered the gym.

“We don’t have a gym. This a big deal to them,” said their teacher Rick Castello. The school’s only large indoor space is their auditorium, which must also double as the library.

By the end of the afternoon all the schools gathered back into Jack Adams for lunch, step shows from the Sigma Gamma Rho sorority, the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, cheerleaders and one purple Gator.

This program is one of several established by Project Connect, which is organized by the Associated Students Inc.

Ten-year-old Dominique, from Willie L. Brown, was one of the lucky winners of a dollar earlier in the day and he said the whole day was fun.

And he knows why he wants to go to college one day.

“So I could get a masters and become a pediatrician,” he said, adding that he wants to help kids.

Dominique would like to go to SF State because he didn’t want to be far from his family and, “cause it’s cool. Because it’s good to have fun, but still learn.”