GOVERNOR’S OFFICE NEWS RELEASE
CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval and State Superintendent of Public Instruction James W. Guthrie were informed this week that Nevada will receive $3,000,000 per year from the U.S. Department of Education for the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP).
The competitive grant was awarded for a seven-year period, which will provide Nevada a total of $21 million from federal sources, and $21 million in cost share resources from state, local and business partners. The funds will be used to advance postsecondary readiness in the State.
Nevada’s GEAR UP application is a collaborative effort among the office of the governor, office of the state treasurer, Nevada System of Higher Education, Nevada Department of Education and stakeholders including parents, students and businesses (Wells Fargo Nevada, AT&T, ACT, College Board, Nevada Public Education Foundation and Texas Instruments) as well as agency representatives.
The Department of Education, as lead agency and fiscal agent, will direct the project implementation with its partners.
This is Nevada’s third GEAR UP competitive award aimed at college and career readiness. The purpose of the grant is twofold: (1) to change the culture of schools located in economically disadvantaged communities to ensure that all students are prepared academically and have resources to attend and succeed in college and (2) to increase NSHE institution involvement in GEAR UP schools to facilitate a seamless transition from secondary to postsecondary attendance and success.
The Nevada state GEAR UP purpose is based on the need for students to do well academically in middle and high school, enroll in rigorous and relevant classes, graduate from high school and enter college as a natural extension of their education. Activities for students include mentoring, tutoring, science, math, engineering and technology (STEM) activities, field trips, financial literacy and parent engagement.
Nevada state GEAR UP will also develop a framework and field test strategies for the implementation of the recently adopted Common Core State Standards and the Nevada College Readiness Standards in GEAR UP middle schools.
Nevada State GEAR UP will launch the new grant operating in 19 middle schools serving 5,480 students. The target schools are in nine of the 17 county school districts throughout the state. The participating counties were selected based on the economic need in the specific schools.
The following counties have schools that have been selected for participation in the grant: Clark, Elko, Esmeralda, Humboldt, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing and Washoe.
