Outreach program aids students

By KATE DAILEY
Collegian Staff Writer

On Feb. 28, Congress will take a day to recognize the efforts of programs designed to fight poverty through education.

The programs, known under the collective title TRIO, include six outreach projects offered by the Department of Higher Education for middle school, high school and college students.

Penn State offers all six outreach programs. The first of the TRIO programs was Upward Bound, established in 1964 and brought to Penn State in 1968. The program is available to children from low-income families or whose parents did not attend college, according to the Office of Higher Education Programs' World Wide Web site. Penn State's Upward Bound serves 120 students from seven target high schools each year.

"Its purpose is for students to gain motivation and academic skills to achieve in post-secondary education," said Maureen Mulderig, Penn State's Upward Bound program director.

In order to participate, students must fill out an application, receive teacher recommendations and sign a contract agreeing to schedule academic courses, take the SATs and apply to colleges.

Students who qualify for the program attend year-round sessions at University Park free of charge.

In the summer, Upward Bound sponsors intensive six-week sessions in which students live on campus and take high school classes.

During the school year, they are bused to campus once a month to receive tutoring, attend study skills sessions and take advantage of shows, exhibits and lectures. They also meet with professors and graduate students to view current research and experience the advantages and opportunities that come with attending college, Mulderig said.

"All of our programs, workshops and events are designed so students do even better in high school, graduate and do well in college," she said.

Luke Ebeling (senior-human development and family studies) is one of the many students who achieved success through the program.

"I was one of those students in high school who didn't put forth much effort," he said. "The program helped me focus on the skills I had and my grades improved dramatically."

Thomas Hopkins, guidance counselor at Moshannon Valley High School, said Upward Bound makes a visible difference in the lives of students.

"I see my kids grow all the time. They become better students and more well-rounded individuals," he said. "The program presents them with opportunities they wouldn't normally have."

Upward Bound serves more than 44,000 students across the country and awards more than $178 million in grants.