For information on the TUSD & Sunnyside GEAR UP Project go to: https://admissions.arizona.edu/eao/GEARUP/

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Hopes for Your Child

Parents work hard to prepare their children for life. Part of this preparation is making sure that your child has the education needed for his or her future career. Another part is helping your child learn how to make responsible decisions. College is important because it can help with both of these aspects of preparation. GEAR UP is designed to support you as you help your child get ready for college.

Plan Early, Plan Now

It's never too early for you and your child to start planning for college. Thinking now about classes to take, college tuition and other costs, study habits, career interests, and lifestyle preferences will make the research and decision stages of college planning much easier. GEAR UP currently offers workshops for parents on college preparation. When the GEAR UP students are in high school, financial aid, standardized tests, and other topics will be covered. See the Calendar for upcoming workshops.

Courses Needed To Enter Public Universities in Arizona

In order to enter the University of Arizona and other state universities in Arizona, your child needs to take challenging courses in high school and maintain good grades in English, mathematics, laboratory science, social studies, foreign language, fine arts, and other subjects. Since four years of mathematics are required, your child needs to take algebra 1 in either eighth or ninth grade. A detailed list of the requirements for entry to the University of Arizona can be found HERE.

Financing College

The GEAR UP team encourages you to think of college as an investment rather than as a cost. You're not draining your savings; rather, you're putting your resources into a valuable investment -- your child's learning and future. In addition, many forms of financial aid exist to help you and your child make this investment. To get started, here are some things you and your child can do:

• Start saving money now.
• Decide how you want to invest your savings (e.g., Arizona Family College Savings Program, Education IRAs, U.S. Savings Bonds, savings account or certificates of deposit at a bank, or mutual funds).
• Investigate financial aid from federal, state, local, and private sources. Click HERE for some helpful links.
• Look into scholarships related to your job or your child's status. (Corporations, labor unions, professional associations, credit unions and religious organizations often provide scholarships for members or children of their members; other scholarships exist for women, minorities, and disabled students.)

Also, you may want to check out the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans.