Alumni
We’d like to congratulate Rusty R. Brown for receiving the Maine Educational Opportunity Association (MEEOA) 2015 Achiever Award, and Kevin Richards for receiving the MEEOA 2015 Rising Star Award and New England Educational Opportunity Association (NEOA) Rising Star Award. Rusty Brown also was selected to attend the Council for Opportunity in Education (COE) 2014 Policy Seminar.
Rusty Brown at MEEOA Conference with Kelly Ilseman and Becky Colannino, January 2015
Kevin Richards with Kelly Ilseman and Becky Colannino at NEOA Conference, April 2015
Rusty R. Brown, UB Classic Class of 1994
MEEOA 2015 Achiever, COE 2014 Policy Seminar Alumni
When writing on the impact of my Upward Bound program participation as it relates to my academic and professional lives, I can honestly say it has been the pivotal factor that led to my success in receiving both my undergraduate and graduate degrees and shaping my career in higher education as an academic counselor. The help and support I received during my time as an Upward Bound student prepared and motivated me to achieve my goal of a college education and instilled a sense of the importance of choosing a career for myself that would allow me to give back in as helpful and inspirational manner as I had received.
As a sophomore at Belfast Area High School, circa 1992, with a 53 average (that’s right, no typo) I must admit that I was “floundering” a bit with my educational path. I was fortunate enough to have had a guidance counselor who mentioned to me (as I returned from a 3 day out of school suspension) a program called Upward Bound that might be helpful for me in turning myself around and getting serious about my school work. I applied in the spring of 1992, was accepted and attended my first summer program. After that amazing summer experience, I was on the honor role for the rest of my high school career, graduating with an 85 average (30 whole points higher than prior to UB). I participated enthusiastically in every UB event and summer program until I graduate in June 1994, with acceptance to the University of Maine as a History major for the Fall of 1994.
I stayed in touch with my UB program throughout my undergraduate degree at UM and upon graduating Cum Laude in May 1998 with a degree in Secondary Education, I had the pleasure of working for my Upward Bound program that summer as a Work Experience coordinator. I then started graduate school at UM in Counselor Education and was able to have a graduate assistantship with UB for the duration of my Master’s work. That led to a fulltime job as an Upward Bound counselor from 2001 to 2012 (with a year away from UB to pursue and receive my State of Maine Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor licensure). I felt very honored and privileged to work with the program that truly changed my life in the most positive ways. I was able to give back and help students achieve their dreams of going to college and creating the lives they wanted to live. Alas, all good things sometimes do come to an end, and in 2012 the UM Classic Upward Bound program was defunded, and I found myself looking for work that would be as fulfilling as my Upward Bound job had been, a tough act to follow.
Fortunately I continue my professional passion of helping other’s in my current position with Eastern Maine Community College as Coordinator of Advising Services. My time as an Upward Bound student has set the stage for my personal and professional success. The lessons I learned then, and still carry with me today, have guided my work both as a person and as a professional and I can whole heartedly say UB was, and continues to be the inspiration that leads me to do good work, in my part of the world. It has been my privilege and pleasure to call myself a UB alumni, and I am eternally grateful to have had this guiding experiences in my life.
Sincerely,
Rusty R. Brown, M.Ed., NCC
Kevin Richards, UBMS Class of 2003
MEEOA 2015 Rising Star, NEOA 2015 Rising Star
Limiting myself to only 500 words while trying to describe the important impact TRiO has had on my life is a significant challenge. Not only did the Math and Science Upward Bound program help me find what I am passionate about, but it also gave me the friends, confidence and resources I needed to get where I am today. I can think of no better way to help students discover what would best make them happy and successful in life than to bring them into a program where you are surrounded by those who are doing what they love.
I could write a paragraph here about my home life and the disadvantages I faced coming from a poor household in small-town rural Maine. I choose not to for truthfully I only have admiration, love and thankfulness for the life that my parents were able to give me. We did not have a lot of money and yes pulling my 1984, Chevy Celebrity that was purchased for fifty dollars into the school parking lot next to another students BMW did present frustration and challenges. However, with the encouragement of my family and the support of the Upward Bound program, I never lost my focus on what I wanted to do with my life. With this love and support, I knew that I was going to go to college.
The Upward Bound program I attended helped me realize two important things: First, how to navigate getting into college, Second and most important find what you are passionate about and through that passion the best direction to make a positive impact in your community, family and life. I have said since my first summer at Upward Bound that I am so lucky to have the support of two families. The family I was born with and now the TRiO family that to this day I am happy to still be involved with. I will support TRiO programs until the day I die not only because of what I have been able to see TRiO do for its students.
After discovering my love for providing education at Upward Bound, I went on to get my baccalaureate in psychology at The University of Maine. With the connections I was able to make through my friends and colleagues in TRiO, it was not long until I found myself working in a TRiO program at Kennebec Valley Community College. Since then I have taken the Director of Student Development position at the college. I have kept the TRiO mentality of community, opportunity and support in everything I do in my job. We are soon to hand out 65 complete thanksgiving meals to students of KVCC and will be setting up our Holiday tree program to provide KVCC families support at Christmas time. These are the things that make me happy, which is why I love my job and will forever be grateful to TRiO for helping me along the way.
Kevin Richards, Director of Student Development
Kennebec Valley Community College
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We’d like to recognize students whose stories have been highlighted in the Maine TRIO Yearbook!
2015 – Christina Tomasello
During my sophomore year of high school, I was looking for a summer program to attend so that I could broaden my knowledge base and improve my chances of getting into college. Since neither of my parents went to college, both of them encouraged me but did not have the financial means to pay for a summer program. This also meant when I did eventually go to college, they would not be able to contribute 100% to my education. My talented and gifted teacher happened to have a brochure for Upward Bound Regional Math & Science program at the University of Maine in her classroom. I brought it home to my parents and decided to apply. What started out as a small venture to join a summer program turned into a life changing experience that not only helped me to get into college, but also directed me to my career path.
Math and science were never my strong suits in school. When I started UBMS, I was slightly intimidated and fearful that I would lag behind the rest because I had struggled in these areas in the past. Being a part of Upward Bound Math & Science program helped me to improve in these subjects and go on to a related career. The summer projects were hands on and divided into small groups, which taught me to not only be able to work constructively with others but also to use science in a different way than we did in school. It wasn’t just dissecting a frog in biology class or reading text. We were actually taking real life issues, like the potato beetle project during the summer of 2004, and coming up with solutions. I felt like our research could actually make a difference, and the hands on approach made it easier to understand. The individual group projects were ultimately my favorite. Coming up with a science experiment that interested me and working one on one with a mentor helped me to gain confidence in my abilities. All in all, participating in the program set me a part from my classmates at my local high school, which made me a more attractive candidate to colleges and a more well rounded student.
The experience that Upward Bound Math & Science provided helped me to realize that not only was college possible, but being in the medical field would be a way for me to continue making a real life difference while using a hands on approach. After Upward Bound, I went on to earn my Bachelors of Science in Nursing from the University of Maine. I graduated in 2009, and have been working as a Registered Nurse in the acute care setting since then. I have worked in a variety of areas including medical, surgical, cardiac, and even postpartum care. I attribute my success in college and in my career to the valuable lessons I learned while at Upward Bound.
2014 – Victoria Pendleton
Becoming a Veterinarian has always been a dream of mine ever since I can remember. However, until Upward Bound Math Science (UBMS) came along, I was afraid that I would never be able to fulfill that dream. As the eldest of three children raised by a single mother, college seemed like a fairytale.
The individual project that UBMS students do each year was one of the greatest experiences. With the individual project, students are placed with a mentor to do research on a topic of their choice and to present their findings at the end of six weeks to a panel of judges. It is thanks to this experience that I found a work-study job on campus doing research on the effects of ethanol consumption on mice and rats.
Thanks to Upward Bound, I am the first person in my family to go to college. They helped me through the application process of applying and were there for me every step of the way. I am now a sophomore at the University of Maine obtaining my BS in Pre-Veterinary science with a minor in Equine Studies. For me, Upward Bound was like a second family, and I can’t thank them enough for all that they have done for me.
2013 – Ismail Warsame
I was born in Somalia and immigrated to the US with my family in 2001. With limited English I faced linguistic, academic, and cultural difficulties that hindered my chances to continue my education beyond high school. I attended the Upward Bound Math Science Program at the University of Maine. In retrospect, I look at my TRIO experience as having boosted my cultural capital. It is also fair to say that, besides my family, Upward Bound was the single most important influence in leading me towards higher education. I have decided to give back and become and educator myself. To that end, in different capacities, I have worked two summers with Upward Bound at the University of Maine. Currently, I am a faculty member at Oregon State University, where I advise international students and teach first-year students.