under much-needed reform efforts, and the additional college readiness and counseling support that they will receive under the GEAR UP grant will have an important impact on school culture and graduation rates.”
The DPS GEAR UP program is expected to improve the district’s on-time graduation rate, the number of students who complete the Free Financial Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) and the number of students who are accepted to college.
Focused on four areas—academic rigor, personal and pro-social behaviors, college and career preparation, and data gathering and analysis—one of the key components of the GEAR UP grant is increased academic counseling services for students. Each of the participating Northwest Denver schools will receive student counseling support so each student will be paired up with a counselor, who will help students create a vision of his/her postsecondary life. Counselors will also offer additional career planning and college-preparation support via mentoring. Counselors will be trained to support students at risk of academic failure due to emotional or behavioral problems and will provide those students with additional supports. Counselors will regularly monitor student challenges such as a student who demonstrates issues related to attendance and completion of their courses.