The school-year session, located at MIT plays an important role in participants’ educational development and provides assistance and support with coursework for students’ regular classes at CRLS. Program services offered during the academic year include: homework supervision, academic advising, workshops, college and career advising, and field trips.
Homework Supervision
The Upward Bound office is open for study/homework supervision on a drop-in basis four days a week, Monday to Thursday. Part-time employees and volunteer tutors from MIT and other local institutions are available to assist participants with homework assignments and to meet with individuals or small groups for specific content-area tutoring.
Academic Advising
Students receive academic advising through monthly class meetings. The meetings provide students in each respective class an opportunity to learn new material and/or strengthen their knowledge in the following areas: understanding current academic status, course selection requirements (high school and college), the college application process and the college experience, career advising and assessment, managing personal finances, goal setting (academic and personal), leadership development, current affairs such as local and national elections, and community service/engagement.
Enrichment Workshops
Saturday enrichment workshops, which help to address more specialized participant needs such as study-skills development, Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) preparation, Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) preparation, the college application process, computing skills, time management, and job-readiness skills, are held once a month from October through May.
Financial literacy workshop/presentation, conducted by certified employees from local financial institutions, are offered during Quarterly Parent Meetings. The presentations focus on personal banking and savings, particularly savings for college.
College Advising
Weekly individual meetings are held with senior students to monitor them through the college admissions and financial aid processes.
Students visit numerous colleges and universities throughout the year, and are strongly encouraged to attend and participate in the annual CRLS College Fair, as well as college fairs hosted by other local agencies such as that offered by the New England Educational Opportunity Association (NEOA) at their annual TRIO Day Celebration. Participants are able to communicate with representatives from these postsecondary education institutions and develop working relationships with them in advance of their senior/application year. Additionally, representatives from several institutions visit the program office to make in-house presentations as necessary.
Representatives from the Posse Foundation visit the program to discuss this scholarship opportunity and the application processes. Additionally, Financial Aid Night is usually held in January to assist parents of seniors with the financial aid application process. A representative from the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA) facilitates the workshop.
Career Advising
The career-advising component of the program offers students exposure to career options through its Career Presentations Program and Job Site Visitation Program, as well as through research on the Internet and follow-up inventories and assessments
Field Trips and Activities
The students participate in trips/activities such as: visits to the MIT Museum, Movie Nights, annual TRIO Day celebrations throughout New England, plays in Honor of Black History Month, Genzyme and New England Aquarium. Additionally, the program participates in community service projects such as: the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - Cambridge Many Helping Hands, Cambridge Science Festival - Robot Zoo and Science Club for Girls sessions. The male students participate in Young Men Leadership Development workshops throughout the year.