NCCEP's On the Ground

During this season of gratitude, three GEAR UP alumni from across the country come together to share their favorite memories, their gratitude, and their hope for the GEAR UP community. Tune in to hear from these alumni and members of the GEAR UP Alumni Association Board of Directors to learn more about their stories and what they are doing to support GEAR UP alumni. 

Common App and NACAC offer college application fee waivers as a resource for students and families with limited financial resources. Our students are automatically eligible for these fee waivers because they participate in GEAR UP. Tune in to hear April Bell and Riccardo Harris, Executive Director of WSU GEAR UP, discuss the benefit of college application fee waivers and share marketing strategies to ensure GEAR UP students and their families are aware of this valuable resource.   

In 2022, the College and Career Readiness Evaluation Consortium (CCREC) released its first report, Examining Relationships: Service Activities and FAFSA Completion, High School Graduation, and Postsecondary Enrollment. This report marks the first comprehensive report of its type, a collaborative analysis of how our work in GEAR UP is related to student outcomes. In this podcast, Chrissy Tillery (NCCEP) will explain CCREC and share its history, Thomas Cech (NCCEP) will provide details on the data collection and analysis methods used, and Marcie Mills (GEAR UP Washington) and Troy Grant (GEAR UP Tennessee) will discuss what the results mean in practice.

Family engagement is a cornerstone of GEAR UP programs. Listen to Katie Hill and Betty Paugh Ortiz discuss family engagement tools with Elvin Browne from GEAR UP Tennessee and Cristal Sanchez CSU Fullerton GEAR UP in this informative episode. 

This year, for National GEAR UP Week, we are posting a podcast episode specifically about #GUweek 2 months early! Listen to members of the NCCEP/GEAR UP Communications Advisory Committee talk about their tips and tricks to plan the best #GUweek yet. 

GEAR UP programs succeed when they use local and national partners effectively. But what makes a good partnership? Hear from Education Service Center Region 12 Director Sheila Anderson and her partners at Texas Instruments about the importance of building relationships to make a partnership mutually beneficial, responsive, and adaptable.

We are getting excited for the NCCEP / GEAR UP Annual Conference in Washington D.C. – our first in-person event in more than two years! To help us “gear up”, we invited a few people who will be presenting a session to share their favorite part of the Annual Conference, some advice for first-time attendees, and a sneak peek at what they’ll cover.

Clubs play such an important role in GEAR UP and in the lives of our GEAR UP students. GEAR UP has been a champion for college readiness and success for decades, and a shining example of this success is Louisiana GEAR UP and they work they do. Listen to Timenee Thomas talk about their Explorers’ Clubs, a club they have created for all GEAR UP students, and how they utilize NCCEP’s Career & College Clubs curriculum to have a positive impact on students’ lives.

There's Still Room features Jasmine Dean, Program Manager with Arizona GEAR UP. She discusses her journey to the world of GEAR UP, approaches to empowering students, and how she shows up for her students. 

What is stopping you from kickstarting your GEAR UP communications plan? Are you unsure where to start? Are you concerned about finding the right tool? Listen in to hear how you can overcome the hurdle of getting started and how one organization is championing the message of #GEARUPworks by elevating the voices of alumni.