Jackson Free Press

JACKSON — Students in certain Jackson high schools and the surrounding areas will receive additional support to graduate and get to college through the Upward Bound program. The Utica campus of Hinds Community College is receiving $5.1 million in federal funds to run the program for the next five years.

Students at Crystal Springs, Hazlehurst, Raymond, Terry, Vicksburg, Warren Central, Forest Hill and Wingfield high schools will benefit from the after-school program, which will start in the fall. Two-thirds of the students who participate must be from low-income families or would be first-generation college students.

Dr. Mitchell Shears, who directs the grant program at the Utica Campus, said Hinds Community College will hire a program director, who will work with the high schools. Part-time employees will run Upward Bound after-school tutoring and career-exploration courses for students. After school lets out for summer, students in the program will go to the Utica campus for a six-week program, where they could potentially get college coursework credits, Shears said.

The program will serve a minimum of 30 students in each high school—240 students annually. Any high-school in the selected schools can apply. Upward Bound helps students with college applications, financial aid, and passing state math and English exams.

Shears said the program will expose students to trade-oriented majors during the summer program, from welding to cosmetology—trades that students can master by receiving an associate's degree in two years at Hinds Community College.

The upcoming 2017-2018 school year will be the first year for the program. Shears said a staff member at each high school will be designated as an "academic champion" to support students in the program on-campus.

"We're going to talk about different majors and different careers," Shears told the Jackson Free Press. "However, the main goal is to have them complete high school."

Email state reporter Arielle Dreher at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter at @arielle_amara.