KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Some Kansas City, Kansas, Public School District graduates are gearing up their next chapter with new laptops thanks to a program through the University of Kansas.
"The GEAR UP program is a federally funded grant, a pre-college grant," said Lisa Henderson-Rowe, one of several program directors for GEAR UP. "From middle school to college, the program supports students, parents and families to prepare them for whatever they may decide to pursue after graduation."
Henderson-Rowe said this program provides numerous educational resources and information about post-secondary life.
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"It's not just a four-year, it's a two-year, it's a certification, it's post-secondary," she said. "... However that looks like for you, we want you to continue on your education. Our program, starting in sixth and seventh grade, helps them to prepare so they can continue on."
GEAR UP is closely affiliated with Summer U, which bridges high school and college readiness and avoids the summer slide.
"We have a lot of students who've graduated and have been accepted into college, but once they graduate, their high school emails that they used for years don't work anymore. Those counselors and college centers that they had access to, well school's closed," Henderson-Rowe said. "And so a lot fall through the cracks and never get to campus that fall.
"So we designed Summer U to bridge that and to be a support for them so they can make sure they send that final transcript, shot records, make sure they understand the importance of attending their college orientation."
Two organizations partnered with the program include Kansas City, Kansas, Community College, and aSteam Village, an organization that focuses on engaging students in STEM fields.
Laptops were provided for each student who earned their digital literacy certifications.
"A lot of professors are concerned that kids have used Google Docs in high school and they can't use these applications when it comes to college academic tasks," Henderson-Rowe said. "So partnering with aSteam Village, with the IC3 digital literacy program, kids like our Alonzo here are finishing up that program to learn about these key applications."
Students who received their certifications and laptops said the technology is life-changing.
"It got me to a point where I didn't know where I was going to be at, so I'm just like very excited I got into this program," said laptop recipient Brianna Dillon.
"What they're doing is giving me free resources and information," aSteam Village's Alonzo Gatlin explained. "They're giving me a laptop, they're saving me $500-600 for something that's very essential for college."
"GEAR UP has taught me that I can achieve anything as long as I'm willing to put in the work, and my dreams are worth achieving and being sought after," said participant Alexandria Radford.
Many of these students have been in the Bridge U program since middle school.
Gabriel Maldonado was once one of them, and now he's a site coordinator for the program.
"It's opened a lot of things for me into my education, and for that, I think that my career has broadened and I just wanted to invest more in my community, for sure," Maldonado said. "I'm from the community itself, and I think that if we can bridge them into post-secondary education, then it's definitely key in their lives as well."
Maldonado is working on his master's degree in sports management.
For more information on GEAR UP, click here.
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