Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE): Student Service: Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) Partnership Grants, Assistance Listing Number 84.334A

Purpose of Program: The GEAR UP program is a discretionary grant program that encourages eligible entities to provide support, and maintain a commitment, to eligible students from low-income backgrounds, including students with disabilities, to assist the students in obtaining a secondary school diploma (or its recognized equivalent) and to prepare for and succeed in postsecondary education. Under the GEAR UP program, the Department awards grants to two types of entities: (1) States and (2) Partnerships consisting of at least one degree-granting institution of higher education (IHE) and at least one local educational agency (LEA).

1. Eligible Applicants: Partnerships consisting of (a) at least one degree-granting IHE and (b) at least one LEA. Partnerships may include not less than two other community organizations or entities, such as businesses, professional organizations, State agencies, institutions or agencies sponsoring programs authorized under the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership Program authorized in part A, subpart 4, of title IV of the HEA (20 U.S.C. 1070c et seq.), or other public or private agencies or organizations (20 U.S.C. 1070a-21(c)(2)). Note: A Partnership under this competition must follow the procedures under 34 CFR 75.127 through 75.129 in developing a group application. This includes developing an agreement that details the activities that each member of the group plans to perform and binds each member of the group to every statement and assurance made by the applicant in the application. This agreement must be submitted with the application.

Ben Witthoefft, U.S. Department of Education, 5th floor 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20202-6450 Telephone: (202) 453-7576 Email: Ben.Witthoefft@ed.gov