|
 |
|
GEARING UP
FOR HIGHER EDUCATION
|
By Christine
Imbs
"Education
is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the
people who prepare for it today."
Malcolm X
|
Given our highly technical and highly competitive global economy,
these words are even more relevant now. Unfortunately, many low-income
students leaving high school are not prepared for higher education
and often are not informed about their options. But with the help
of a $28 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, students
in the St. Louis area will get the chance to GEAR UP.
GEAR UP—Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate
Programs—is a nation-wide program that encourages middle and high
school students to stay in school, study hard and prepare for college.
“This is an exciting program and exactly what this area needs,”
says Thomas George, University of Missouri-St. Louis chancellor
and co-chair of GEAR UP St. Louis. “With growing global job competition,
access to higher education for students from all economic backgrounds
is vital for the economic health of the St. Louis area. It’s important
to ensure the region has an educated citizenry and a work force
that is abundant, well prepared and qualified.”
A
student intern from the University of Missouri-St.
Louis works with students at Simmons/Marshall Magnet
School in St. Louis. |
|
Co-sponsored by UMSL and St. Louis Community College, GEAR UP St.
Louis is actually the second such program to be started in the metropolitan
area. The first, which will wrap up this year, began with an $8
million grant. It has focused on about 900 seventh grade students
in four school districts—Wellston, Normandy, Maplewood/Richmond
Heights and St. Louis Public Schools—following them throughout high
school.
Clarence Ward, the new project director for GEAR UP St. Louis, says
the experience they’ve gain from the first program plus the additional
money will make a tremendous difference in what they are able to
accomplish.
“So many of our young people are inadequately prepared academically
and often receive little to no information about education options
and opportunities,” he says. “More money means we can reach more
of these kids. And knowing some of the problems of the past will
help us improve how we structure and operate the program.”
|
(Left to right): Charles Schmitz, dean of the
College of Education at the University of Missouri-St.
Louis; UMSL Chancellor Thomas George; Patricia Simmons,
the William R. Orthwein Jr. Endowed Professor of Life-Long
Learning in the Sciences at UMSL and director of GEAR-UP;
and St. Louis Community College Chancellor Henry Shannon.
|
|
This time around, the program will be working with 6,000 seventh
grade students in eight school districts—Wellston, Normandy, Ferguson-Florissant,
Hazelwood, Jennings, Riverview Gardens, University City and St.
Louis Public Schools. The plan is to create programs and activities
to raise student academic achievement levels in science, math, social
studies, and literacy.
The Science Center, a partner in GEAR UP St. Louis, is planning
several family nights to bring together the students, their families
and other participating partners to talk about the impact of a quality
education, particularly in math and science.
“The Science Center is the hub of science entry for learning in
the metropolitan area,” comments Sharonica Harden, vice president
for education at The Science Center. “And when you’re talking about
making a major impact, the three most critical components are home,
school and community. We want to highlight the Science Center and
bridge the gap between those components.”
Another partner, the Missouri Black Expo, is planning to present
a GEAR UP Leadership Summit at the Expo on August 5. The Summit
will focus on encouraging students to prepare for college by choosing
the right courses, and will bring them together with representatives
from various colleges and universities. Parents also will learn
about postsecondary education preparation as well as financing options.
Thomas Bailey, MBE president, says partnering with GEAR UP St. Louis
was an opportunity they couldn’t pass up. “We’re very excited about
this program,” he says. “We plan on enriching these kids and making
a major impact; not just for the GEAR UP student, but city-wide.”
The $28 million grant is the fifth largest ever awarded a GEAR UP
program. Patricia Simmons, lead project investigator and UMSL Orthwein
professor of Lifelong Learning in Sciences, says applying for this
grant was a little like going for the gold.
“The Department of Education must have liked what we were doing
with the first program because they encouraged us to submit another
proposal,” she comments. “And since the emphasis this time was on
scaling up, we thought why not ask for $28 million. If we’re going
to be bold, let’s be bold.”
Boldness may have its benefits but in this case those benefits also
came with a rather large condition—the highest level of match requirement
on any federal grant.
“It’s a dollar-for-dollar matching grant” explains Simmons. “To
participate, our school partners had to provide matching and in
kind contributions equaling $800 per student per year. And of course,
we had to find partners willing to match dollar-for-dollar. So far
we have about $32 million in matching funds. That’s what I call
commitment.”
The six-year grant was awarded last summer. But Ward says although
they plan to have GEAR UP St. Louis in the schools this year, they
don’t want to rush it. “We want to make sure the districts’ and
the Gear Up resources are being used to their best advantage,” he
says. “We don’t want some piece meal type of program with very little
benefit or validity. We want to make sure it’s right.”
Ward also says there’s talk of applying for another grant toward
the end of the program to allow them to follow the students at least
through their first year of college. But for now his hope is that
their efforts will have a continuing effect.
“We want to develop a culture within the community, families and
schools that encourages young people to prepare for the future,”
he comments. “We want it to become a philosophy of education, not
just something that is done during the grant and then forgotten.”
Henry Shannon, co-chair and chancellor of St. Louis Community College,
agrees and adds, “We are just thrilled to be part of this program.
It is critical that we reach these young people early. We can’t
expect them to get to their senior year and then tell them to start
thinking about college. I believe this program will be a benchmark
to affect generations for years to come.”
|
Gaining
Early Awareness and
Readiness of Undergraduate Programs
|
GEAR
UP believes that it falls to families, educators, businesses
and entire communities to ensure that students succeed in
school and continue their education beyond high school. The
following is a list of some of the partners supporting the
initiative:
|
|
•
Metropolitan St. Louis Alliance of Black School Educators
• Missouri Black Expo
• Missouri Botanical Garden
• Missouri Department of Higher Education
• Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority
• Opportunities Industrialization Centers
• St. Louis Black Leadership Round Table
• St. Louis Community College
• St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association
• St. Louis Science Center
• The Academy of Science of St. Louis
• The Center for Human Origin and Cultural Diversity
• UMSL College of Education and College of Arts & Sciences
• Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis
|
Anyone
interested in becoming a partner or contributing to GEAR UP
St. Louis should contact Patricia Simmons at (314) 516-5794.
|
|
|
|
|
|
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
|
