Tusculum College Upward Bound celebrates local student graduates

Celebrating the successful completion of their high school careers, 40 Tusculum College Upward Bound seniors and their families attended a banquet and discussed paths to success at their respective colleges in conjunction with College Signing Day. Dr. Nancy B. Moody, president of Tusculum College, was the featured speaker.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Upward Bound is a program designed to help students excel in high school while providing them with preparation for college success. Students selected for Upward Bound meet with a counselor at their respective school on a regular basis.

The banquet, held on May 1, was aligned with “Reach Higher,” an initiative of First Lady Michelle Obama. The highlights of the evening were the presenting of chords of achievement that the students would don at their graduations, as well as Dr. Moody’s speech about her own struggles as a first-generation college student and her subsequent success as a nurse, nursing professor and ultimately president of Tusculum College.

“Upward Bound was proud to share in First Lady Obama’s celebration, as it aligns perfectly with many of the goals which Upward Bound was founded upon in 1965 as part of The Higher Education Act,” said Jeanne Stokes, director of the TRIO program, which includes Upward Bound, Talent Search and Student Support Services. First Lady Obama created the “Reach Higher” initiative in hopes to inspire young people to “take charge of their future by pursuing education beyond high school.”

Stokes added, “This hope is at the very heart of Upward Bound.” Both First Lady Obama’s plan and Upward Bound incorporate summer programs meant to expand and broaden students’ horizons, support academic planning and promote a better understanding of the financial aid process. Since none of these admirable concepts are new to Tusculum College’s Upward Bound, which has been promoting student achievement for more than forty years, it was a natural progression to make College Signing Day a new tradition, she added.

 

Tusculum College President Dr. Nancy B. Moody places an Upward Bound graduation cord on Cocke County High School senior and future Tusculum College student Delessa Stewart during the Upward Bound Senior Banquet.

 

By Chloe Creel

Upward Bound Intern