By SCOTT D. JOHNSTON

The North Beach School District will receive nearly $900,000 in U.S. Department of Education federal grant funds over seven years through a program designed to help students from low income schools prepare for college and gain access to financial aid, North Beach School Superintendent Deborah L. Holcomb said last week.

Speaking to local business owners and operators at the Ocean Shores Convention Center’s 2018 Event Showcase, held Jan. 10, Holcomb welcomed North Beach Junior/Senior High’s acceptance into the GEAR UP program as a potentially huge difference-maker for area youth, and one that needs the community’s support. She said the program has a matching component that can help businesses that do things such as creating opportunities for job-shadowing and other involvement with students.

“This is one of the biggest opportunities for kids at this school in a long time,” she said. Interviewed last week, Holcomb explained that the district has been pursuing the program for nearly a year, and it will become available to NBHS students when the 2018-19 school year begins in September. The grant funds come as $126,000 yearly for seven years.

According to the website, www.gearup.wa.gov, Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) is “a competitive federal program that provides six- and seven-year grants to education/community partnerships and states to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education.”

In Washington state, the program is administered through the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC), a state cabinet-level agency created in 2012. Federal grants also fund the program at the University of Washington and Washington State University. WSAC will administer its part of the grant, totaling $24.5 million (plus matching monies), in partnership with 27 low-income school districts.

The website, www.wsac.wa.gov, explains that “GEAR UP provides tutoring, mentoring, college and career counseling, college visits, family activities, financial aid awareness, and other research-proven activities and services to help more students enroll and succeed in college,” as well as “professional development to teachers, counselors, and administrators to build program sustainability…”

North Beach is a district that sought funding to help turn around the reality that “the percentage of our students who go on to college is not nearly as high as we’d like it to be,” Holcomb said.

Representatives from the district attended a pre-grant writing session last February, submitted their formal proposal in late spring, learned of WSAC’s approval in early summer, then waited. She said the district’s Assistant Director for Student Services, Debra Hughes, works on all grants and was deeply involved in this effort.

On Oct. 2, 2017, WSAC announced final federal approval. Gov. Jay Inslee said, “GEAR UP increases achievement during and after high school, which has a ripple effect beyond low-income students that also benefits their families and their communities.”

A team of six from North Beach attended their first training sessions at the GEAR UP West Conference in Portland Oct. 30-31. In December, Robin Mayther was hired to be the local GEAR UP Coordinator. A former school counselor, Mayther worked with NBHS Principal Lynn Buedefeldt in the latter’s former post in Taholah.

With GEAR UP, North Beach is in the process of pursuing a “turnaround strategy” by implementing a program called Advancement Via Individual Determination, or AVID. The AVID program teaches students the skills needed to leave high school ready to succeed in college and other postsecondary education. Skills include focused note taking, organization, reading for learning, and collaborative study groups. The program is designed for students underrepresented in colleges and supports them in navigating the college entrance system, including how to write college essays, complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and apply for various scholarships.

AVID could directly involve more than 100 of the school’s 270 students. Holcomb said the program will be used in grades 7 through 12, and “our long-term plan is to include the elementary schools.”

Ocean Shores City Council member Lisa Griebel is the principal at Aberdeen’s Miller Junior High School, which already participates in GEAR UP and AVID. She serves on a statewide AVID Principal Leadership Collaborative Team.

“I am thrilled that the North Beach Schools secured the GEAR UP grant and are using the grant to implement AVID,” she said. “The mission of AVID is to close the achievement gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success in a global society.”

“I experienced AVID change a culture of a school. When you shift, then support, the adult expectations that all students can successfully prepare for a postsecondary experience … schools beam with hope and enthusiasm. When adults believe, then youth, too, believe in themselves.”

“When we change the lives of kids, we improve the health of our entire community,” she said.

Holcomb encouraged area businesses to call her at the district office, (360) 289-2447, to learn more about getting involved with the program. “We’re building our future together,” she said, “unlocking potential one student at a time.”