Long days become short, hot summer days turn to brisk nights, the laughter of children is replaced by the sound of school bells. Fall is the season in which school starts up again. In all this commotion, people who can’t afford college are left behind.

Thanks to the Upward Bound program, more teens have help going to college.

Academic excellence is the key to success, but students who are from low-income families do not have the same chances of going to college. Based on the law, “No Child Left Behind,” Upward Bound is a program funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Upward Bound assists students in grades 9 thru 12 in successful academic achievement while also preparing them for college. It also provides counseling, social skills and activities designed to build academic skills and self-confidence.

According to Wikipedia, the program takes two approaches in assisting students. The first allows high school students to take college prep classes on a college campus for five to six weeks in the summer. If this does not interest the students, they have another opportunity of a weekly follow-up and tutoring throughout the school year.

“Our goal is to help students grow academically, and socially,” said Bonnie Richardson- Berry, Assistant director at Kent State University.

Cara White, a former Upward Bound student and now a Kent State University senior, said the program helped her grow. “It helped me find out who I was, and it also helped me financially.”

Cara received three Upward Bound scholarships: the Minority Book Award, the Oscar Ritchie Memorial Scholarship and the Upward Bound Scholarship.

White said students in Upward Bound feel the program, “gives them hope and the extra push into knowing that I can be what I want to be.”

At the end of the senior year, Upward Bound students can choose to bridge. Bridge is a program that provides an opportunity to complete six college credits during the summer before starting college. A group of Upward Bound students is now enrolled at Kent State University.

“I bridged during my senior year and received seven credits,” White said. Each credit costs around $384 in state tuition, and most college classes earn three credit hours.