About Us

WHY WE ARE

The Chicago GEAR UP Alliance was formed to increase the number of students graduating and going on to post-secondary education by effecting positive whole-school, systemic change in Chicago public schools. The Alliance works with schools, teachers, students and parents in order to improve achievement levels, improve classroom instruction and increase awareness of the possibility of post-secondary education.

WHO WE ARE

The Chicago GEAR UP Alliance is an unprecedented partnership organized by the Chicago Education Alliance. It includes Northeastern Illinois University and NEIU's Chicago Teachers' Center, Roosevelt University, DePaul University, Loyola University Chicago, the University of Chicago, Truman College, the Chicago City Colleges, North Lawndale Learning Community, the Consortium on Chicago School Research and 18 other educational, business and cultural institutions, cooperating with the Chicago Public Schools. These partners work collaboratively to address critical needs that impede student access to and success in college beginning in the middle grades.

In 1999, the Chicago Education Alliance (CEA) was awarded a $31 million grant over five years under the U. S. Department of Education - Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) - to work with 35 schools in the city of Chicago. An additional grant of more than $6 million was awarded in 2000 increasing the number of schools and students served. Northeastern Illinois University serves as fiscal agent and lead university for the grants.

These grants will help more than 15,000 inner city Chicago public school children prepare for and graduate from high school, and enroll and ultimately succeed in college.

WHAT WE DO

The Chicago GEAR UP Alliance plan was developed to ensure substantial improvement at the school level by providing service and assistance to students, teachers, parents and schools. Through the collaboration of the multiple partners, resources, activities and services are developed and shared across a network of schools.

The types of activities the Chicago GEAR UP Alliance organizes are (click on the links below to get more information on any activity):

For students

Tutoring and mentoring;
after-school and weekend classes, including high school credit courses for middle school students;
summer enrichment Academies;
teambuilding & conflict resolution programs;
college tours with parents;
information on career and post secondary educational opportunities;
and scholarships.

For teachers
Vertical teams in Language Arts/English, Advisory & Transition and Math - curriculum integration and articulation between middle school and high school subjects; college prep curriculum development -
professional development teams focused on curricular change; and professional development activities in subject matter & pedagogy, some for teacher accreditation/endorsement, via forums, conferences, classes, courses and workshops.

For parents
Workshops in various areas, including: financial aid and other college information; child development and parenting skills; technology; adult education/ ESL /GED; and college visits.

These activities promote the goal of the project by

1) ensuring that teachers are grounded in the new standards for teaching and learning;
2) focusing and aligning existing programs in accordance with the standards;
3) communicating and coordinating curriculum planning and implementation consistently across all grade levels;
4) holding staff accountable for reaching specific progress benchmarks;
5) involving students, teachers, parents, businesses and community agencies, post secondary institutions, and policy makers in building learning communities that ensure middle and secondary students are prepared for, pursue, and succeed in post secondary education.

WHERE WE WORK

The Chicago GEAR UP Alliance is organized into clusters or Networks of schools (see map below) across the entire city of Chicago. Most Networks are organized around existing high school feeder patterns: a group of elementary and/or middle schools and an associated neighborhood high school. Each of the nine Networks is partnered with a university or college, along with neighborhood agencies and businesses. For more information on each cluster, click on the links to the left.