UW-Superior and the Superior Middle School teamed up to create Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness in Superior or GEARS. The partnership trains UW-Superior students to become tutors and mentors while providing middle school students with praise, encouragement and fun.

'Parents like it. Teachers like it.'

GEARS program assistant Julie Schmidt says couldn't be more impressed with the program. "This is extremely exciting. Parents like it. Teachers like it. I even had a parent tell me she cried after seeing her daughter's improved grades. It's just gotten really positive feedback from all involved."

13 UW-Superior students volunteered to become mentors in fall 2009 to work with students beginning in spring 2010. GEARS mentors enroll in a sociology course that meets twice a week with a tutoring session that follows.

UW-Superior students emphasize good study habits and praise students for improved grades. Mentors aimed to raise SMS student grades by focusing on three main subjects-math, science and language arts.

UW-Superior studentsearn three sociology credits for their participation in GEARS as well as a $500 stipend for their efforts. Demar, a legal studies major, says the money is what enticed him at first. "I got so much more out of it though," he adds.

What's your wing?

Twenty-two middle school students were divided into three wings-blue, green, and red. Each wing had at least four mentors. Mentor Brian Demar says the wings made a difference.

 "The wings made it so everyone got to be a part of a group. All the kids became more sociable and that helped me open up," said Demar.

Demar and Schmidt noticed no students were ever left out of the wings.

Noticeable changes

Schmidt says nearly all the SMS student's grades improved since they began participating in GEARS. Demar noticed the change in the students as well as himself. "Their grades improved and my leadership skills blossomed. It's been a lot of fun being a part of GEARS."

Fun/study ratio

Students didn't spend all the time on school work. GEARS mentors and students get out into the community twice a month to participate in fun group activities. Some of the activities took place on the UW-Superior campus such as an open gym night and a jazz concert. Other activities included a visit to the public library.

Bright summer and future

The GEARS summer program is an additional session during which six mentors and 13 SMS students examined many social, physical, spiritual, and academic aspects of life. The smaller cohort of students brought the group together and helped them gain confidence. The summer program ran for four weeks from late June to mid-July. UW-Superior students were paid an hourly wage to participate during the summer session.

While the number of mentors dropped during the summer, Schmidt says she expects 90 percent of mentors to return during the fall 2010 semester. GEARS will be looking for mentors to add to the mix as well as a brand new set of mentors for the spring and summer in 2011.

GEARS is part of the Academic Service-Learning program at UW-Superior. Academic Service-Learning enables students to apply concepts and skills they learn in the classroom and give that knowledge back to the community.

Students interested in GEARS may contact Julie Schmidt at JSchmi17@uwsuper.edu or visit the Center for Academic Service-Learning in Old Main 312 to learn more.