Students in Cedar Hill ISD ‘Gear Up' With $6.3M Grant

The Cedar Hill Independent School District is pumped about a big grant — $6.3 million is now headed to the district.

And, what that money will do is "something good."

The $6.3 million federal grant will pay for a program called GEAR UP.

GEAR UP stands for Gaining Early Awareness of Readiness for Undergraduate Programs.

Nearly 1,300 students at Bessie Coleman and W. S. Permenter Middle Schools will benefit from the grant. It will help sixth and seventh graders with college and career readiness, according to Jamie Brown, a district spokeswoman.

The U.S. Department of Education website says GEAR UP provides 6-year grants to states and partnerships to provide services at high-poverty middle and high schools. GEAR UP grantees serve an entire cohort of students beginning no later than the seventh grade and follow the cohort through high school.

GEAR UP funds are also used to provide college scholarships to low-income students.

Brown said the $6.3 million grant is one of the largest ever received in the Cedar Hill ISD.

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