Funded in 2007 by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Upward Bound is a TRIO Program designed to provide educational and personal support services that will increase the high school graduation and college enrollment rates of its participants.
Upward Bound serves high school students from low-income families in which neither parent has earned a bachelor's degree. Services include: academic advising and workshops, tutoring, college visits, assistance with the college and financial aid application process, social activities, and a residential summer school experience on the LMU campus.
Mission & Philosophy
Upward Bound is a commitment to educational equity and an extension of our service to the community. UB's charge is not only to increase the number of students who go to college, but to also help shape participants into future leaders. The program provides fundamental support to participants in their preparation for college entrance.
More than just a program, UB is a community. The expectation is that each member of the community will support one another's efforts to grow, learn, and realize their full potential as students and individuals. The program motto, "It's not just what you learn, it's who you will become", is manifest in all aspects of the Program. What we do is as important as how we do it. Students may "survive" high school, or "good enough" is never the goal. At LMU Upward Bound, the goal is to thrive.
While the LMU UB mission is concrete, the response to student needs is fluid and the program changes as necessary. Services and activities are balanced; they incorporate equal degrees of hard work, reflection, and fun. Thus, students are able to connect what they know, value and become as a result of their UB experience, with a future that will see them thriving and realizing their full potential as human beings and scholars.