GEAR UP
The State of Connecticut is one of over 47 states awarded funding from the U.S. Department of Education to implement Project GEAR UP-- an early college awareness program for low income and minority youth. The Office of Educational Opportunity, a division of the Connecticut Department of Higher Education, was awarded funds over six years to implement their proposed strategic plan in two cities—Bridgeport and New Haven. These cities represent the largest and poorest urban metropolitan centers in Connecticut. Data from the 2000 Census Bureau reports that the poverty rates for Bridgeport and New Haven are 18.4% and 24.4%, respectively. Poverty rates in these cities are three to four times the statewide rate of 7.9%.
GEAR UP in Connecticut is a partnership between the Connecticut Department of Higher Education and Bridgeport and New Haven public schools, as well as the University of Connecticut’s Center for Academic Programs. Begun in 1999 with 7th grade students from 14 elementary and middle schools, GEAR UP now serves students in grade 7 - 12 in 29 schools in Connecticut.
The Connecticut Department of Higher Education has a number of minority advancement programs that have been in place over the years (see Figure 1). The goal of these programs has been to ensure that the ethnic diversity of institutions of higher education reflects parity with the state’s population. In Connecticut, the GEAR UP project has been implemented at the middle school level so the program can complement the already-existing programs in place at the high school and college levels.
Figure 1. Connecticut Department of Higher Education Minority Advancement Programs
What is GEAR UP?
The Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) were created in 1998 during the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to encourage more young people from low-income families to consider and prepare early for college. Currently, GEAR UP serves 1.2 million students in 47 states, the District of Columbia and three territories. The program can be found in all but three states: Idaho; New Hampshire; and North Dakota. In now its seventh funding year, GEAR UP has received almost $1.2 billion since its creation and has 280 partnership grants and 36 state grants.
NCCEP (National Council for Community and Education Partnerships) serves as the intermediary organization for several private and corporate foundations and currently works with several large-scale initiatives, including the federally funded GEAR UP.
The mission of the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP) is to develop and strengthen broad-based partnerships throughout the education continuum, from early childhood through postsecondary education.
NCCEP seeks to help improve public K–16 education by:
- creating education/community partnerships,
- linking schools and communities,
- developing new research-based college access programs, and
- supporting the implementation of proven educational strategies.
Using research findings to create successful frameworks for action, NCCEP aims to invigorate the principle of equal educational opportunity for all students. NCCEP’s work is intended ultimately to:
- help improve public education,
- increase students' academic achievement levels, and,
- increase low-income students' access to higher education.
Toward this end, NCCEP brings together colleges and universities with local K–12 schools, parent groups, businesses, government agencies, foundations, corporations, and community-based organizations to create systemic change in education.
Project GEAR UP has two primary objectives. The first is aimed at a systemic school reform designed to impact the manner in which mathematics is delivered at the middle school level. Research conducted by The College Board suggests that math is a primary gatekeeper for successful matriculation into college. Therefore, this project has devised a strategic plan that encourages school districts to offer Algebra I to urban middle school adolescents. The goal is that these students, once in high school, will be placed on an academic track that provides them with the necessary sequence of math courses that ensures their access into the post-secondary option of their choice. This plan offers direct and indirect strategic activities designed to positively impact student performance such as: (a) academic enrichment and support programs for middle school youth, (b)
professional development workshops for school administrators, teachers and guidance counselors, (c) parent workshops on how to finance a college education, and (d) financial aid given directly to students in the form of ‘gap filling’ scholarships. The organizational chart depicted in Figure 2 illustrates the key components of our initiative.
The second objective is to develop an affective curriculum that serves to heighten students’ awareness of college as a viable option for their future, support their psychosocial development, encourage their engagement in the educational process, and facilitate students’ bonding to their school and peers. The Office of Educational Opportunity, Bridgeport Public Schools, and the University of Connecticut, which comprise our state’s GEAR UP Partnership, have contracted with Yale University to develop and implement this component of the program. The affective component is called “The MAAX” which stands for Maximizing Adolescent Academic eXcellence.
