Local Teens Get Academic Boost from Intensive Upward Bound Program Date: June 20, 2000 By: Dawn Fuller Phone: (513) 556-1823 Archive: General News High school students from the Cincinnati Public and Princeton schools are gearing up for a six-week experience living on UC's campus that will involve intensive study, work and planning ahead for college. UC's Upward Bound summer program began June 19 for 100 students who may not have considered college as an option before now. The free program recruits students in grades 9-12 from low-income backgrounds as well as students whose parents did not attend college. During the summer experience, the students stay in residence halls on UC's campus. Half of them work part-time jobs while the others spend the morning in education enrichment classes. Their day begins at 7 a.m. and leads into afternoon classes that cover basic math, calculus, biology, chemistry, French, Spanish and English. They continue to work on their homework through the evening, wrapping up at around 8:30 p.m. and enjoying UC's sports facilities and game room before "lights out" at 11 p.m. UC's Upward Bound includes 27 students from Princeton and CPS who are getting an early jump on college through a summer bridge program. They've been studying in Upward Bound and finished their senior year in high school, and can now take two college classes that will transfer to the college of their choice. Upward Bound Director Phillip Cathey says 50 percent of those students plan to continue their college experience at UC. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, UC's Upward Bound program is one of the oldest in the nation, established in 1968. Earlier this year the department awarded the UC program a $1.76 million federal grant, amounting to $440,674 a year for the four-year grant. Nationally, Upward Bound operates on more than 700 college campuses to improve college graduation rates for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. A national impact study found Upward Bound had a significantly positive impact on students' academic expectations and that during their first year in the program, they earned more academic high school credit than students from similar backgrounds who did not participate in the program. "Upward Bound has pointed students in the right direction," says Cathey. "Once they get to college, they're better prepared than their peers because of their experiences with the summer programs experiences involving staying on campus, living in the residence halls, having a schedule, and preparation on applying for financial aid." "From their freshman to senior year, I see them gaining more confidence in their academic ability, in their decision making skills and in establishing new goals for themselves." The summer program takes students on field trips ranging from tours of college campuses to a Reds game. Students also compete with other Upward Bound students from around Ohio in the Upward Bound Summer Olympics which will be held July 22 at Central State University. Upward Bound also enrolls 100 students in a program of academic study that stretches through the year.