THOUSAND OAKS, CA - The U.S. Department of Education has awarded California Lutheran University a $1.6 million grant to expand its TRIO Upward Bound Math and Science Center over the next five years.

The grant will enable the center to prepare 75 low-income students each year to continue their education beyond high school in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. This is an increase of 20 students per year.

The students, all aspiring to be among the first generation in their families to go to college, attend Channel Islands, Hueneme, Oxnard and Pacifica highschools in Oxnard, Hawthorne and Leuzinger high schools in Los Angeles County, Fillmore High School and Santa Paula High School.

The center, which has been on the CLU campus for 22 years, has served more than 275 students in the last fiveyears. All participants graduate from high school and 86 percent graduate from a post-secondary school. This year’s high school graduates included a student who earned a full-ride scholarship as a Posse Scholar and another who received a $20,000 scholarship as a Dell Scholar.

Students take classes in literature, composition, math, science and foreign languages and participate in cultural and recreational activities throughout the academic year and during a six-week residential program in summer. Center staff also provide tutoring,advising and assistance with test preparation and college-application completion.

The Federal TRIO Programs, which also include traditional Upward Bound, are designed to identify and provideservices for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. CLU has the distinction of having four TRIO programs: two traditional Upward Bound, Student SupportServices and Upward Bound Math Science.