Student Support Services, Talent Search/Open Doors and Upward Bound, three of Cameron University’s most critical student support programs, have received grants from the U.S. Department of Education that will allow them to continue to provide significant services to underserved populations through August 2021.
The TRiO Programs work with the ultimate goal of assisting participants in reaching their dream of postsecondary education. Each program has its own goals, objectives and clientele. The programs identify youth or adults with potential for academic success who meet government income requirements and whose parents did not graduate from college. Services are provided to program participants that will enable them to succeed and graduate from postsecondary education. All Cameron TRiO programs offer tutoring, career planning, personal counseling, study skills, postsecondary advisement, cultural activities and workshops to enhance learning.
The Student Support Services (SSS) program was awarded $460,680 for the academic year and is guaranteed additional funding through August 2025. The program provides opportunities for academic development, assists college students with basic university requirements, and serves to motivate students toward the successful completion of their post-secondary educations. The SSS program may also provide grant aid to current SSS participants who are receiving Federal Pell Grants. The goal of SSS is to increase retention and graduation rates of its participants and facilitate the process of transition from one level of higher education to the next.
Awarded $417,727 in the final year of its performance period, Talent Search/Open Doors identifies and assists individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds who have the potential to succeed in higher education. The program provides academic, career, and financial counseling to its participants and encourages them to graduate from high school and continue on to the postsecondary schools of their choosing. Talent Search also serves high school dropouts by encouraging them to re-enter the educational system and complete their educations. The goal of Talent Search is to increase the number of youth from disadvantaged backgrounds who complete high school and enroll in and complete either a certification or degree from the postsecondary education institutions of their choosing.
Cameron’s Upward Bound, which received $352,757, provides fundamental support to participants in their preparations for university entrance. The program provides opportunities for participants to succeed in pre-university performance and ultimately in higher education pursuits. Upward Bound serves high school students preparing to enter postsecondary education who come from low-income families or from families in which neither parent holds a bachelor’s degree. The goal of the program is to increase the rates at which participants enroll in and graduate from institutions of postsecondary education with a degree. All Upward Bound projects must provide instruction in math, laboratory science, composition, literature, and foreign language. Upward Bound will also receive funding next year under its current performance period.
For information on Cameron’s Student Support Services, call 580-581-2352. To learn more about Upward Bound and Talent Search/Open Doors, call 580-581-5581.
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PR# 20-111
October 8, 2020
