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• Created on Thursday, 19 May 2011 16:52

Examining GEAR UP Graduates College Experiences Survey Results

Students at UMaine, the University of Machias, and Washington County Community College recently participated in a survey crafted to help us understand our GEAR UP graduates’ college experiences, feelings of preparedness for college, and the extent to which they were accessing the student support services on their campuses.

In the fall of 2010 Syntiro received a grant funded by Maine’s College Access Challenge Grant administered by the Finance Authority of Maine. Our grant project, Bridging the Gap: Ensuring College Success for GEAR UP Graduates, objectives were designed to address the unique and complex challenges faced by Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) graduates as they embark on their college journeys. Drawing on the most current research and data, this project was developed to provide personalized mentoring and support for over 150 GEAR UP graduates on three Maine college campuses: the University of Maine, University of Maine at Machias, and Washington County Community College.

Research and data from this project will inform the efficacy of the existing college support programs, identify potential barriers or resource gaps, and serve as a source of information to the institutions in adapting, adopting or creating more efficacious supports for student populations who are underserved. Additionally, the research and information garnered through this project will be shared among GEAR UP high schools to continually improve their college access programs. The findings will also be disseminated among project partners and others invested in ensuring Maine students achieve post-secondary success.

Read the final report, including the results of this survey, downloadable as a PDF.