Cal State San Bernardino’s Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math have been awarded $4,023,440 in federal funding for their programs to help students in San Bernardino and Rialto graduate from high school, and enroll and graduate from college.

The funding, which is for five years starting in 2018, is under the U.S. Department of Education’s Upward Bound Program, one of eight Federal TRIO programs offering outreach and program services for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, including low-income, first-generation students and individuals with disabilities, to advance through the academic pipeline.

Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math Science were signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson as part of his War on Poverty.

CSUSB’s Upward Bound serves 200 students in 9th through 12th grade enrolled at Arroyo Valley, Carter, Eisenhower, Pacific, Rialto and San Bernardino high schools that within either the San Bernardino City Unified or Rialto Unified School districts.

The goal of CSUSB’s Upward Bound is to increase the rate at which participants complete secondary education and enroll in and graduate from institutions of postsecondary education. This is achieved by providing participants with fundamental support in their preparation for high school graduation and college entrance.

“As a TRIO alumna myself, I know first-hand the impact that TRIO programs have on first-generation, low-income students,” said Dalia Hernández, director of Upward Bound. “Upward Bound and other programs like it are a much-needed resource in our region. Our Upward Bound programs here at CSUSB have had an impact in increasing high school graduation, college readiness and college enrollment and completion. TRIO works.”

Program services include instruction in math, laboratory science, composition, literature and foreign language; information on the full range of Federal Student Financial Aid programs and benefits; guidance and assistance on secondary school reentry, alternative education programs or entry into general educational development programs or postsecondary education; and exposure to STEM and other opportunities traditionally unavailable to students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Upward Bound helped prepare program participant Julio Lopez for college.

“Because of Upward Bound, I am attending Cornell University this fall,” said Lopez, a 2017 Upward Bound alumnus.

Program alumnus Luis Portobanco gained knowledge about the college system through Upward Bound. He graduated from CSUSB in 2016 with a degree in communication, focusing in public relations and human communication.

“Before Upward Bound, I didn’t know what college was,” Portobanco said. “I thought I was going to do what my brothers did and just get my high school diploma and go straight to work.”

Visit the CSUSB Upward Bound website or more information about the program.