Pitt to Receive Funding to Support Upward Bound Program

PITTSBURGH-The University of Pittsburgh has received $486,495 from the U.S. Department of Education to support the Upward Bound Program, a program that helps high school students prepare for higher education. The initial year of funding begins Dec. 1 and continues through Nov. 30, 2008, with funding continuing in the same amount for three additional years, provided the program achieves its objectives.

Housed in the Academic Resource Center in Pitt's School of Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Studies area, the Upward Bound Program will target students in need of academic support from selected Pittsburgh Public Schools who are low-income and the first-generation in their families to pursue college. Pitt's project will support 112 participants this year.

Says Judith McConnaha, senior director of undergraduate studies in Arts and Sciences, "We are proud to partner with Upward Bound in helping to prepare local high school students for success in college. We see this collaboration as a vital investment in the future of the city and the region, and we look forward to welcoming our 2008 participants."

A national program, Upward Bound is designed to help high school students develop the skills and motivation necessary for success in higher education. Participants receive instruction in literature, composition, mathematics, and science on college campuses after school, on Saturdays, and during the summer. There are 774 Upward Bound programs throughout the United States.

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12/18/07/tmw