Page 2 - GEAR UP 2019 Brochure
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Arizona GEAR UP  |  Strengthening the Education Pipeline                                                                                                                    GEAR UP Communities 2000   – 2019

      Every child deserves access to a quality education and the opportunity to earn a college     ƒ And two, by leveraging resources to support Arizona’s education priorities
      degree. Arizona’s economic prosperity depends on increasing the number of residents     and expanding capacity to make local and state initiatives possible: GEAR UP
      with degrees or workplace credentials. Since 2000, Arizona GEAR UP has strengthened     advances broader and shared aims with a variety of partners committed to improving           26                   67                  12k+
      the pipeline leading to educational attainment on behalf of the state in two ways:      Arizona’s educational outcomes—ensuring that the state’s strategies to achieve its educational
                                                                                              attainment goal extend beyond GEAR UP communities alone succeed. These partnerships and
         ƒ One, by increasing high school graduation and postsecondary enrollment for         collaborations leverage resources, build capacity, support priorities, and make a variety of    Communities        Schools               Students
                                                                                              local and state initiatives that both current and future students benefit from possible.
        thousands of students from diverse communities across Arizona: GEAR UP
        provides college awareness and readiness services to all students in an entire cohort
        (graduating class) beginning in seventh grade and continuing through high school and   Arizona’s economic future depends on producing more college graduates              School Districts
        into the first year of college. Cultivating the motivation, knowledge, and skills needed
                                                                                                                                  attracts
        for entire cohorts to succeed along the pathway to college creates a sustainable, high-                               more businesses                                     2000 – 2006
        expectations culture in partner schools that benefits subsequent cohorts of students.                                   to the state
                                                                                               A skilled workforce                                                                Alhambra Elementary                Grand Canyon
                                                                                                  in Arizona...                                                                                                                               Pinon
        45% of Arizona                                                                                                                                                            AZ State Schools for the
        residents 25–64                                                                                                                                                           Deaf & Blind
        years of age have   Arizonans with        Predicted need   68% of jobs will                                                                                               Flagstaff Unified
        completed a 2- or   post-secondary                         require training                                                                                               Kingman Unified
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       AZ
        4-year degree          degrees               by 2020       beyond high                                                   decreases           increases                                       Bullhead    Golden Valley    Flagstaff
                                                                                                                                  poverty
        or received a          45%                   68%           school by 2020 2                                                                 our tax base                  Mesa Unified          City        Kingman
        postsecondary                                                                                                                                                             Phoenix Union                              Cottonwood      Winslow
        certificate 1                                                                                                                                                                                        Mohave
                                                                                                                                                                                  Pinon Unified               Valley   Prescott       Cornville  Holbrook
                                                                                                                                                                                  Santa Cruz County                     Valley   Dewey-Humboldt
              Sources: 1) expectmorearizona.org/progress/, EEO/AA Statement 2) cew.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Recovery2020                                         Yuma Elementary
                                                                                                                             grows businesses
                                                                                                                             that are already here                                Yuma Union
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Phoenix     Mesa    Miami
                                                                                                                                                                                  2006 – 2012
       GEAR UP works!  |  Outcomes/evidence of success                                                                                                                                                                                             Globe
                                                                                                                                                                                  Coolidge Unified
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Coolidge
       Under NAU’s first two grant cycles (2000–2006 and 2006–2012), GEAR UP students         Similarly, a matched comparison-group research study shows that GEAR UP students served   Crane Elementary                               Casa Grande
       graduated and entered college at rates far exceeding the state averages, as verified   under the 2012–2019 cycle beat the odds relative to FAFSA completion and graduation, as   Flagstaff Unified     Yuma                       Eloy
       by student-level data and independent evaluations. These outcomes, shown in the        shown in the graphic below.                                                                                   San Luis
       below graphic, were attained despite low-income and other disadvantages of the student                                                                                     Globe Unified                                                Tucson
       populations in the communities that GEAR UP served.                                                                                                                        Miami Unified
                                                                                                                GEAR UP vs comparison schools                                     Murphy Elementary                                       Patagonia
                                  GEAR UP vs. state                                                                                                                                                                                 Nogales     Douglas
                                                                                                     FAFSA completion                        Graduation                           Phoenix Union
                 High school graduation (%)            College going (%)
                                                                                                                                                                                  Yuma Union                   Cottonwood–Oak Creek
                             2000−2006             2000−2006                                                                                                                                                   Elementary
                  69%            State             State    45%                                     47%  Comparison schools       Comparison schools          83%                 2012 – 2019                  Douglas Unified
              82%             GEAR UP              GEAR UP         75%                         58%            GEAR UP             GEAR UP                     88%                 Bullhead City Elementary     Holbrook Unified             Mohave Valley
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Elementary
                             2006−2012             2006−2012
                                                                                                                                                                                  Casa Grande Elementary       Humboldt Unified             Toltec Elementary
                73%              State             State      51%
              83%             GEAR UP              GEAR UP         72%                      *In 2012, the GEAR UP Evaluator worked with staff at the AZ Department of Education to identify 20 high schools similar to the 12 GEAR UP high schools in baseline academics,   Casa Grande Union  Kingman Unified   Winslow Unified
                                                                                             graduation rate, student to teacher ratio, locale, school letter grade, social economic and ethnic composition, and Title I status for purposes of a statistically valid comparison.
                                                                                                                                                                                  Colorado River Union         Mingus Union                Yuma Union
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