January 22, 2024
Dr. Gabriel Brown, the Director of Shawnee State University’s Upward Bound Math & Science (UBMS) program, had the opportunity to take 12 students to Puerto Rico over Winter Break. Over the course of four days, students were fully-exposed to Puerto Rican culture, while also gaining valuable academic experiences.
“The experiences that these students had in Puerto Rico were life changing,” Dr. Brown said. “It was also life changing for me because I got to see them experience something that they never would have without this program.”
A federally-funded program through the U.S. Department of Education, the UBMS program at SSU is a pre-college program for Appalachian students in Ohio and Kentucky that encourages college readiness. The program is delivered through a 6-week residential summer program on SSU’s campus, school visits, and monthly Saturday STEM activities and career exploration throughout the academic year. Students that are accepted into the program travel around the tri-state area, as well as coast-to-coast to fulfill the experience requirements for the program.
“This program has seen students raise their ACT scores from a 21 to a 32,” said Dr. Brown, adding he is excited for the future growth of UBMS at SSU. “We are going to make sure you are set up for success if you put in the effort.”
An integral part of the UMBS program, students are required to be provided with cultural experiences, college experiences, and also STEM related activities. In Puerto Rico, the students learned different dance styles of the culture, how to cook traditional food from a master chef, and even got to develop new skills through a leadership class.
“Our students were fully immersed,” said Dr. Brown. “They wanted to learn everything by asking locals every question they could.”
During the trip, the students visited El Yunque National Forest where they hiked through the rainforest, swam in waterfalls, and learned about the wildlife. The students also got to kayak through the Bioluminescent Bay, learning about the microorganisms that live there while also experiencing the scenery.
“In just four days, those kids got to experience a trip with so many life experiences.” said Dr. Brown.
To learn more about the Upward Bound Math & Science program at Shawnee State University, visit shawnee.edu/ubms or contact Dr. Gabe Brown at gbrown@shawnee.edu.