Eastern Illinois University is currently playing host to students of Kankakee Community College’s Upward Bound program. The Upward Bound program is designed for high school students who have an interest in attending college after high school.

More specifically, the program is for students who wish to become first generation college graduates, as their parents did not receive college degrees.

The students who attend the program come from three different high schools around the Kankakee area and must be willing to give up some of their summertime and maintain at least a C GPA in order to participate in the program. The program is year round, but is highlighted by the session at Eastern over the summer.

The students will take classes, study, and listen to guest speakers at Eastern through July 21 while residing in Ford Hall for their six-week terms. They have a specific curriculum of classes to take which includes an English class, a math class, a lab science class, and two elective courses.

The Upward Bound program emphasizes academics, improved GPA, technology utilization, and study skills.

This is the program’s 15th summer at Eastern.

“We liked Eastern’s campus from the very beginning. It’s a small campus close to Kankakee with a long history of sponsoring camps and conferences” said Rick Braun, director of the Kankakee Upward Bound Program. “We also work well with the Secondary Education program whose students work for their certification with our students” He added. “We appreciate the cooperation with the University.”

Braun also added that typically about three or four graduates of Kankakee Community College’s Upward Bound program decide to attend Eastern every year. “They enjoy the comfort and familiarity of the campus” he said.

“Students react very positively to our program and it’s a great opportunity to be able to prep them academically and personally.” Said Braun.