Daytona State awarded new TRiO Upward Bound grant to serve West Volusia students

Nineteen-year-old Miosotie Delgado said Daytona State College’s Upward Bound program opened her eyes to the life changes coming her way and taught her to be prepared.

Delgado, a 2010 graduate of Deltona High School, is among hundreds of at risk-high school students who have successfully transitioned into college thanks to the help they received through Daytona State’s Upward Bound program.

During the next five years, 54 economically disadvantaged students from Deltona and Pine Ridge high schools will get that same support annually, thanks to a new $1,250,000 TRiO Upward Bound West grant awarded this month to Daytona State by the U.S. Department of Education. The college will receive $250,000 each year to provide academic support and enrichment activities to the students, most of whom would be the first in their families to attend college.

Daytona State has received federal Upward Bound program grants since 2003. Students are enrolled in the program as early as ninth grade and participate in activities throughout their high school experience that are designed to build academic skills, increase motivation, improve self-confidence and help them develop the social skills necessary to succeed in a collegial environment. 

Miosotie Delgado

“Students  travel  to the Deltona Campus twice a week and two Saturdays a month for tutoring, homework assistance, test preparation, career exploration and college planning,” said Associate Director Dora H. Giddens. "They also receive life skills and character education."

The program also has a six-week Summer Academy component, with academic sessions that build upon the foundation students have acquired throughout the year.  For many students, the consistent contact and collaborative, collegial group experience help them discover opportunities for their futures they may otherwise not have recognized.

“To have that consistent interaction, the positive energy and encouragement by someone who can help them see their potential, often makes a huge difference in the lives of these students,” Giddens said, noting that nearly 98 percent of the past TRiO students graduated high school and many matriculated into college.

Delgado is among them. While she temporarily enrolled at Seminole State College upon high school graduation, she will return to Daytona State in the fall to pursue her associate of arts degree.

Upward Bound, she said, has been a positive experience both academically and personally.  “It gave me the support I needed to reach my goal of being the first one in my family to attend college,” she said. “It has helped make me a leader and to become a better example for my younger siblings.”