Making College More than a Dream for Disadvantaged Kids

My mom is one of the smartest people I know. Unfortunately, she never had the opportunity to get a formal education. My mother's high school career ended when she got married at sixteen and started having children. She faced insurmountable obstacles that prevented her from getting an education, including, poverty, lack of encouragement and lack of knowledge. She passed many of those obstacles on to me. Fortunately for me, however, she also gave me the tools that I needed to overcome those obstacles. As a result, I became the first person in my family to graduate from college.

Today, I am the director of a program that helps students plan and prepare for college early. The GEAR UP Program gives students hope, encouragement and practical advice for getting through high school, into college and on to successful careers. Many of the students in our program must overcome tremendous odds in order to go to college. GEAR UP gives them the tools to make that happen, including opportunities to participate in meaningful activities, relationships with caring, supportive adults, and high expectations.

GEAR UP is a program that is federally funded through the Department of Education. Our community was awarded a GEAR UP grant in 1999 making us one of the first GEAR UP projects in the country. In order to apply for the grant, a community partnership was formed between our local community college and the school district. They agreed to work together to create a community in which higher education is a realistic option for every student.

Maintaining a focus on student success and our overall mission has allowed the collaboration between the community college and the school district to be a highly effective one. Middle school teachers, high school teachers, district administrators, college GEAR UP staff, faculty and administration all work together to develop and implement strategies to help students plan and prepare for college beginning in the seventh grade and continuing through high school graduation.

Every student has a portfolio that begins in the seventh grade that serves as a blueprint for the future. The portfolio includes a variety of student activities that are completed as part of the regular school day as an integrated component of the curriculum. Students set academic goals and have opportunities to explore career options through college and work site visits. In addition, they participate in a variety of activities to increase awareness of individual skills, abilities and attributes. The portfolio provides the framework to steer students toward areas of interest and encourage academic achievement. For example, students in the eighth grade take the ACT Explore Assessment that provides feedback on academic readiness and individual aptitudes as they relate to expressed areas of interest. A team made up of teachers from a variety of disciplines and GEAR UP Achievement Coordinators developed the portfolio. The achievement coordinators work closely with classroom teachers to implement the portfolio activities.

While the portfolio is an important curricular component of the program, GEAR UP also provides extra-curricula support for students. GEAR UP supports a variety of educationally enriching extra-curricular activities in which students can participate.

GEAR UP achievement coordinators plan and coordinator "college institutes" that give students the opportunity to spend up to five days on a college campus. They participate in age-appropriate classes, sleep in dorms, eat in the cafeterias and visit with college students who act as mentors.

GEAR UP also sponsors a variety of after school clubs and activities. Teachers and youth service workers in the community are encouraged to develop and propose activities for GEAR UP students. An advisory committee reviews proposals and provides funds to support innovative strategies to help students plan and prepare for higher education and careers. Proposals include college day camps, after-school clubs focused on specific areas of interest and special projects that target the individual needs of students. In addition, students are granted scholarships to support participation in community-based programs that will help them reach their goals. For example, if a student is selected to attend a leadership camp but doesn't have the money to attend, GEAR UP can help.

GEAR UP also provides after school tutoring in each of the schools where GEAR UP students attend. By teaming with Americorp, a national service program, GEAR UP brings college students to the middle schools to assist students with homework and remediation. This partnership is not only cost effective, it provides the college students with valuable experience and allows the middle school students to engage in mentoring relationships with successful role models.

Infused in everything we do in GEAR UP is the understanding that relationships are the key to changing attitudes and behavior. We have a wonderful staff who work hard to connect with kids and provide opportunities based on individual needs and goals. They are all "kid people" and kids respond to the genuine care that they demonstrate. While we have a wonderful staff, they could not provide the level of support that is necessary without the help of community volunteers. Paid staff and volunteer staff operate as a team to support student needs.

We also recognize that we are a small part of the students' world. Parents and teachers are the most influential people in the lives of students. We make every effort to support teachers and to help them integrate the GEAR UP message and model in their classrooms. We rely on their expertise to guide our activities and we find ways to provide the resources to support the strategies that they develop and implement. The on-going collaboration between the building faculty and our staff is an important component of our success.

Also key is the relationship with parents. Parents are the most effective advocates for their children and the greatest influence in terms of the choices that kids make. Parents who are supportive of education tend to have kids who are more successful. We provide information and support to help parents be more effective advocates. We recognize that most, if not all, parents want the best for their children. However, many parents are not aware of opportunities and resources that are available to them. We try to increase their awareness. We conduct monthly family nights with guest presenters from colleges and agencies in the community. The family nights are held at the college, we provide childcare, dinner and translation for monolingual Spanish-speaking participants and an activity for GEAR UP students. For many families this is the only time they are ever on a college campus. The experience changes their perception of college and sustains the hope that college can be more than a dream for their children.

The feedback we receive from teachers, parents and students is that GEAR UP is making a difference. However, we recognize that there is so much more to be done and we don't know yet what the long-term effects of GEAR UP will be. As our students near high school graduation we will be observing their choices very closely. Many of our students come from poor families in which no one has ever gone to college before. For those students who become the first person in their family to go to college the effects will be far reaching.

A few years ago, my son took a college placement test at school. That night he was telling me about the test. He said, "They asked if we intend to go to college and I realized that I never considered not going to college." For my son, college was not only a very real possibility it was an expectation. What a difference we can make in one generation.

About the author

Debbie Dougan has worked with students and families for 15 years as a social worker and administrator in school-based child and family service programs. She has a Masters Degree in Sociology from Central Missouri State University. She is currently the director of the GEAR UP program at Columbia Basin College. For more information about GEAR UP she can be reached at ddougan@pasco.wednet.edu or by phone at (509) 543-6724.

GEAR UP staff have built effective relationships with classroom teachers, school administrators, and students. Tutoring, mentoring, job shadowing, college visits, summer camps, parent workshops and career fairs are among the many services provided by the GEAR UP partnership project.
Contact:
Frank Murray (509) 547-0511 ext. 2235
Debbie Dougan, (509)543-6700

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