Checotah, Vian, Sallisaw, Dewar and Ben Franklin Academy are among 28 Oklahoma schools partnering with the University of Oklahoma’s K20 Center for Educational and Community Renewal to help middle school students and their families prepare for post-secondary education.

OU’s K20 Center, a statewide research and development center, received a $43 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, with equal matching funds from grant partners, including Oklahoma’s Promise program, totaling more than $86 million to implement GEAR UP for LIFE.

The program is a partnership between OU’s K20 Center for Educational and Community Renewal and 28 under- resourced schools across 23 primarily rural school districts in Oklahoma to help students and their families prepare for college and workforce training.

The “GEAR UP” program, which stands for “Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs,” began through the U.S. Department of Education in 1998. It is one of the largest national programs focused on increasing low-income students’ college and career readiness.

“The GEAR UP program empowers students for success in college and beyond, and OU’s K20 Center has a proven track record of building innovative partnerships with Oklahoma schools, teachers and community leaders to improve student outcomes,” said OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. “The GEAR UP for LIFE program will enhance our state’s workforce pipeline and fuel economic prosperity, but most importantly, it will have a far-reaching and long-lasting impact that will change the lives of generations of Oklahomans.”

“Programs like GEAR UP and TRIO, which I have been a longtime champion of, ensure Oklahoma’s low-income students and families have access to the education and workforce training that is vital to the economic prosperity of our great state,” said Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04). “I am proud to congratulate OU on this significant grant, which will allow even more Oklahoma students the opportunity to achieve high-paying, high-skill jobs in their home state.”

The program will directly impact 8,258 sixth or seventh-grade Oklahoma students in the participating schools. The program will follow students for seven years, throughout and beyond high school graduation.

The funding will support hiring dozens of educational outreach staff who will create and implement research-based activities that support students’ college and workforce preparedness, such as tutoring, mentoring, college and career readiness events, and interactive gamebased learning aids.

“GEAR UP for LIFE is the largest grant in the nearly 30-year history of OU’s K20 Center,” said Gregg Garn, vice president for online learning and executive director of the K20 Center. “Students benefiting from the grant will be better prepared to help grow the workforce necessary to ensure Oklahoma’s continued economic prosperity.”