Student Services Program Review-Spring 2010 - Shasta College

Student Services Program ReviewGaining Early Awareness and Readiness forUndergraduate Programs (GEAR UP)Reporting Director: Kathleen Mahar, Ed.D.General Program InformationThere are four US Department of Education programs: 1. Gaining Early Awareness andReadiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP), 2. TRiO Educational Talent Search(ETS), 3. TRiO Student Support Services (SSS) and, 4. TRiO Upward Bound (UB). Allprograms are authorized under the Federal Higher Education and Opportunity Act andshare the common goal of increasing educational options for low income and/or firstgeneration college students.The Higher Education Act (HEA) was originally signed into law in 1965 to ensure thatpostsecondary education options were available to all students in the United States.The original act was the Johnson Administration’s attempt to remedy discriminatorypractices that had prevented low income students and student of color from enteringcollege and achieving their educational dreams. To achieve these goals, the HigherEducation Act allocated funds for programming that would: increase financial aidoptions; help students complete high school and enter postsecondary education;increase funding to institutions serving non-traditional students; and, improve collegeteaching programs for students seeking to teach in the K-12 system.The TRiO programs gained prominence shortly after the original signing of the HigherEducation Act. The term TRiO actually refers to several different programs that servethose who are first-generation college students and meet a low-income criteriaestablished by the US Department of Education. All TRiO programs are similar in thatthey provide tutoring, summer enrichment, financial aid awareness, enrollment supportand college tours for the students that participate in the program. Upward Bound (UB),which serves 9-12 grade students, began in 1964 and was the first of the TRiOprograms. Educational Talent Search (ETS), serving students from 6 th through 12 thgrade was added in 1965, and the Student Support Services (SSS) program, servingcollege students, was added shortly thereafter. Together, these three programs weretermed the “TRiO” programs. There are now a total of eight programs in the TRiO familywhich are all designed to encourage students from diverse, non-traditional backgroundsto pursue postsecondary education.President Clinton introduced the GEAR UP program in 1997 as part of his K-12educational reform agenda. It was officially established during the 1998 renewal of theHigher Education Act. The GEAR UP program’s primary difference from TRiO was itsfocus on whole school, systematic reform. Unlike the TRiO programs, which serveeligible students, the GEAR UP program serves eligible schools (those with 50% ormore students eligible for Free and Reduced Lunch). GEAR UP programs provide directservices to cohorts of students as they follow them from 7 th grade through high schoolgraduation. GEAR UP also provides broader support for parents, teachers and- 284 -