For immediate release: July 27, 2007

BLOOMSBURG — Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania’s TRiO Upward Bound Program will celebrate 29 years with refunding that will last until 2012.

The program, which has been on BU’s campus since 1978, has been continually refunded through a federal grant provided by the Department of Education. This year, the program received a five-year grant, rather then the traditional four-year grant.

“Our grant proposal, written under the direction of former director Maureen Mulligan, was in the top 10 percent of all applications submitted, so we were fortunate to receive a five-year grant,” said Kate Bauman, project director of TRiO Upward Bound. Mulligan retired earlier this year.

The reward of a five-year grant is the second of its kind for Upward Bound at BU. The last five-year funding was received in 2002 when BU’s grant proposal was also in the top 10 percent.

According to Bauman, the grant will go toward supporting the program’s objectives, which include providing programs and academic preparation for first-generation college students.

Upward Bound serves high school students from Berwick, Bloomsburg, Mahanoy Area, Milton, Minersville, Mount Carmel, North Schuylkill, Pottsville, Shamokin and Shikellamy high schools. The program provides students with opportunities and assistance in exploring their potential for academic, social and personal growth. Its purpose is to provide equal access to post-secondary education for high schools students by giving them adequate preparation.

“Students participating in the summer program come to campus and take classes that they will take this fall in high school,” said Bauman, “offering them the opportunity to get a jump start on the academic year.”

The grant provides Upward Bound with the ability to serve 90 students. This includes hiring high school teachers to teach the students a variety of subjects.

Bloomsburg University is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The university serves approximately 8,000 students, offering comprehensive programs of study in the colleges of Professional Studies, Business, Liberal Arts and Science and Technology.