Even if no one in your family ever went to college, that doesn't mean that no one will. All it takes is for one person in a family to act upon that dream, and by their example others can follow.

It takes a lot of courage and determination to be the first in anything. It also takes a lot of support. Talk to your child's teacher or principal about how students become aware of what college is and how to prepare. Ask questions! Find out what is available at school! Ask if there are mentor programs to help your children succeed in education after high school. Look around you for role models. Find people like you who have succeeded. Ask them how they did it!

Here is an excellent place to begin from the U.S. Department of Education:

GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) is a program that provides tutoring, counseling, and mentoring services beginning in the middle school grades to low income youth. GEAR UP Partnership grants bring together colleges, middle schools, and other partners to provide long-term support services. GEAR UP grants to states support similar efforts and include a scholarship component.

TRIO Programs help Americans from low-income families to successfully graduate from college. Programs include: Upward Bound, Student Support Services, Talent Search, Educational Opportunity Centers, and the Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement Program. Upward Bound reaches students in grades 6-12. Students in Upward Bound are 4 times more likely to earn an undergraduate degree than those students from similar backgrounds that did not participate in TRIO.

American Indian Higher Education Consortium has resources related to tribal schools in the United States. There are many support resources available.

National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education has resources related to historically and predominantly Black Colleges and Universities. Also contains information for minority students and families.

Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities has a listing of Hispanic-Serving colleges and universities as well as other resources for Hispanic students.

To the reader: Non-U.S. Department of Education websites are linked as a public service only. These websites are provided as a tool to help visitors explore the wide range of options and information available, and to help them make informed choices about how to prepare for and pursue postsecondary education opportunities. As such, the organization, services, advice, or products are not endorsed or guaranteed in any way by the U.S. Department of Education and are entirely the responsibility of the webmaster of the site visited.

U.S. Department of Education

For technical questions about the web site: webmaster@ed.gov