KSU TRIO Programs’ ACT Boot Camp Helps Local High School Students Get Into College And Succeed In Life

Dallas, GA3⁄4 Kennesaw State University’s TRIO Programs are hosting an ACT Test Prep Boot Camp that aims to not only prepare high school students for the big test that will determine their college entrance, but they are also working to prepare students for life in the community. The Boot Camp is a 10-week commitment that takes place every Saturday, and students that give up their weekends gain confidence for their ACT Test and learn soft skills that will benefit them in their future workplaces, such as timeliness, work ethic, and accountability.
Students involved in the Boot Camp are local Upward Bound Students from Hiram High School, Rockmart High School, and Cedartown High School, and Upward Bound Math-Science Students from East Paulding High School. KSU TRIO Programs are committed to helping serve our community by empowering the underserved and underprivileged reach success through providing opportunities like the ACT Boot Camp and promoting student habits that foster achievement in collegiate environments and beyond. KSU TRIO Programs Director Dalton Lemelle said “These students who have devoted 10 consecutive weekends to prepare for their future shows the promise and power that our community’s youth has. They are going to do great things, and we are honored to be able to help them along the way.”KSU TRIO Programs are partnered with Kaplan to bring the ACT Boot Camp to Paulding and Polk Students. The ACT Test Prep Course consists of 18 hours of live instruction in 6, 3-hour sessions. Students also will have access to 3 Kaplan-proctored 3.5-hour practice tests in class, a total of 9 online tests, 25 hours of supplemental lessons, and their own prep books for the ACT. While access to ACT Test Prep materials is just a piece of the puzzle that bars many families from equitable representation in colleges, KSU TRIO Programs is using the ACT Boot Camp as a platform to help remedy this issue.
The ACT Test is one of the entrance exams that determines students’ acceptance into college, and the students’ scores have the ability to help them to qualify for financial aid and academic scholarships. In the 2018-2019 schoolyear, KSU TRIO Programs helped 40 high school seniors accept over $448,073 in financial aid. It is the goal of Kennesaw State University’s TRIO Programs to empower TRIO families to success, motivate students to achieve their dreams, and enrich our community.