LaToya Dillard, a 10th grade student from Morrilton, didn?t mind spending her summer taking classes at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway.
?It wasn?t as bad as I thought it was going to be,? said the shy teenager.
Dillard was one of about 50 high school students from four central Arkansas school districts to attend Upward Bound, a federally-funded program that prepares teens for college entrance.
According to the U.S. Department of Education Web site, ?Upward Bound serves high school students from low-income families, high school students from families in which neither parent holds a bachelors degree, and low-income, first-generation military veterans who are preparing to enter postsecondary education.?
Students boarded in UCA residence halls for six weeks over the summer and took four classes each day beginning at 8:30 a.m. Classes included math, science, writing and foreign language.
In the afternoon, students had recreation time and attended study hall and lifestyle programs such as alcohol and tobacco awareness.
Every other Friday, students spent the day in a job shadow program. Dillard was one of several who shadowed medical professionals at Conway Regional Medical Center after expressing an interest in a career in medicine.
Other students shadowed employees in various positions at UCA including the police department, men?s basketball, Channel 6 and the Office of Communications.
Megan Uting, an 11th grade student from the Perry-Casa School District, shadowed in the Office of Communications because she is interested in photography.
She was able to practice her photography skills with a digital camera and made prints in the darkroom. ?It was fun,? she said.
During the last week of the program, students were treated to a three-day field-trip to Memphis where students explored an art museum, visited the zoo and even had some time to visit Graceland and Planet Hollywood.
?It?s difficult to make a trip both fun and educational, but I think we succeeded,? said Mary Ellen Fox, a program coordinator for Upward Bound.
On Friday, July 23, an awards banquet was held on campus to wrap up the summer program. Participants, family members and coordinators of the program attended the banquet.
?Seeing everyone here attests to your student?s desire to go to college,? said Nancy Burris, director of the Upward Bound program.
Students participating in Upward Bound will receive follow-up tutoring at their schools throughout the academic year and will spend one Saturday each month on campus.
Once a student is accepted into the program, he or she remains in it until graduation. According to Burris, high school seniors may enter the Bridge program, a follow-up to Upward Bound that allows participants to earn college credit over the summer.
For more information on the Upward Bound program, contact Nancy Burris at (501) 450-5858.
-Jennifer Boyett
