School may be out for summer, but GEAR UP is not taking a break! CAP is hosting events on campus and across North Carolina to help students get more excited for postsecondary possibilities and for educators to enliven their passion for innovation.
June started off strong as GEAR UP summer bus tours across the state led participants in a 5-day educational excursion through 8 colleges, multiple museums, a planetarium, aquarium, and a tour of the coast. The bus tours are running through the end of July, and students from across multiple districts will engage in a summer of fun, learning, and adventure. Follow the GEAR UP Appalachian Facebook page for more coverage of the summer tours.
GEAR UP hosted the Academic Innovation Conference (AIC) June 18-19 on the campus of Appalachian State University. In its third year, the AIC included an Innovation Expo, a grant pitch competition, keynote addresses and inspirational sessions led by College Access Partnerships staff, Reich College of Education personnel, school district educators and administrators, experts from our educational partners like Participate Learning, First North Carolina, Mastery Prep, and more. A recap of the event can be viewed here.
Finally, rising GEAR UP sophomores and juniors just completed a 5-day camp on the campus of Appalachian State University. Camp NASCAR (Navigating Automobile Safety Collisions and Robotics) aimed to increase interest and engagement in robotics as well as to teach students more about the history of Nascar in North Carolina. At the camp, students stayed and dined on campus, completed racing obstacle courses using coding machines, learned from App State Robotics team members and coaches, participated in an external field trip, and competed in a culminating competition in front of their families and friends. More information and a full summary of this event is liked here.
To learn even more about what is happening with GEAR UP and College Access Partnerships, read our CAP summer quarterly newsletter here.
Academic Innovation Conference
Academic Innovation Conference
Camp NASCAR
Camp NASCAR
Bus Tours
Bus Tours
Educational Expansion Projects = Opportunities Pitch Competition
Educational Expansion Projects = Opportunities Pitch Competition