STUDENTS `UPWARD BOUND' IN EDUCATION

Crystal Tripp thought she was in for an easy summer, participating in Project Upward Bound, a federally funded education program.

But the 17-year-old East Prairie high school student quickly discovered the six-week summer session at Southeast Missouri State University was anything but a breeze.

"When I came up here I thought it would be very easy, but it's not," she said.

And that suits Tripp just fine. "I like the way they challenge us. It's not a free ride," she said.

Tripp is one of 44 Bootheel area high school students who are spending their summer in classes at the Cape Girardeau school under a federal program designed to give them a boost in pursuing a college education. The students stay on campus.

Project Upward Bound is one of three federally funded programs known collectively as the Trio programs.

The programs originated during the Johnson administration in 1965, but they are new to the university and the region, said Irene Ferguson, director of Upward Bound at Southeast.

Besides Upward Bound, the university administers the Talent Search and Student Support Services programs serving the region. All of the programs are designed to aid disadvantaged students, primarily those coming from low-income households and families where neither parent is a college graduate.

Talent Search deals with students starting in the seventh grade. Upward Bound serves high school students, basically grades 10-12.

Student Support Services at Southeast aids those college students who are attending the Cape Girardeau school.

The Trio programs aid students in the Bootheel counties of Scott, Mississippi, Stoddard, New Madrid, Dunklin and Pemiscot.

Talent Search is serving about 1,100 students. Student Support Services currently aids about 200 people.

"We have students from as close as Scott City to as far as Deering (in Pemiscot County)," said Ferguson.

Upward Bound is more than just a summer session; it's a year-round program, Ferguson said.

In addition to the summer classes at Southeast, the students are bused to the university campus two Saturdays a month for various courses and seminars. In addition, the students receive academic and career counseling and tutorial assistance during the year.

Nationwide, there are over 500 Upward Bound programs in operation.

This is the first year for the summer session at Southeast, said Ferguson, who previously worked with an Upward Bound program at Indiana University.

Southeast has received a three-year grant amounting to $199,000 per year to operate the Upward Bound program.

The program is administered from an old brick house at 403 N. Pacific, which has been converted into office space.

The program operates with a full-time staff of three. But with summer personnel, including high school and university faculty who teach the classes, the staff totals 26 people, Ferguson said. The staff includes residential personnel in Towers East, where the students are housed, and college students who serve as tutors.

The summer session is a comprehensive program that involves a busy schedule of classes for the students and structured activities.

"We live with them for six weeks," said Ferguson, clad in a red "Upward Bound" T-shirt.

The summer session began June 20 and ends July 31.

Regular classes are held Monday through Thursday in everything from math to language arts, science to career counseling. "Then we have different activities on Fridays," said Ferguson.

Classes are held in the mornings, with physical education and study hall sessions filling up the afternoons. After dinner, the students have drama and music sessions from 7-8:30 p.m.

"We give the kids awards every week," said Ferguson. There are also field trips and scholar bowls.

"Just for a fun trip, we went to Six Flags," she said.

The summer classes are high-school level courses, but they are taught more like university courses. "They (the students) are given more homework," she explained. "They have to spend more time doing their work.

"We try to put a lot of emphasis on writing skills and reading skills," she said.

Part of the program involves preparing the students to take the ACT, a national college-entrance examination.

There's a lot of individual instruction. "Our teachers don't have more than 10 or 13 students in a class," said Ferguson.

The students in the program have expressed an interest in going to college. Ferguson said that nationally 85-90 percent of Upward Bound students go on to college.

Tripp, for one, believes the summer study will help her get a college education. She said she likes the Southeast campus, except for the hilly terrain.

Albert Toombs, 14, of East Prairie, is already planning on attending Southeast. He said he particularly is enjoying drama and English classes. "I write poetry," he explained.

Isaiah Bashley, 15, of Howardville, also wants to go to college. He thinks the summer schooling can only help. "It helps you face life head-on," he added. "It is a challenge."

Toby Woodson, 17, of Sikeston, loves to play basketball. He also sees the need for a college education. "If you don't get an education and go to college, there is no possibility to get a decent job," he said.

Woodson said the summer session is no easy task. "They expect more of you." But he added, "The teachers are really nice and they are really helpful."