Academic Achievement Programs

at The University of Akron

Academic Achievement Programs is six program strong department of the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs, which empowers students through academic, cultural and social experiences to ensure their success in higher education.

Coleen Curry, Director, Academic Achievement Programs
Nancy Kusnyer, Secretary, Academic Achievement Programs

Academic Achievement Programs
The University of Akron
Ayer Hall Room 311
Akron, OH 44325-7908

Phone: (330) 972-6804
Fax: (330) 972-5886

If you would like more information about the individual programs, please click on the links below.

Educational Talent Search

Educational Talent Search is a federally funded TRIO program which serves 1,025 participants in 6th through 12th grade in targeted Akron Public Schools. Applications are accepted year round. ETS provides free services to assist participants in successful enrollment or re-enrollment in postsecondary education.

In 1988, the Firestone Trust Fund awarded The University of Akron a $3 million gift from which an endowment was established to create the Firestone Fellows Strive Toward Excellence Program, otherwise known as STEP.

The Strive Toward Excellence Program is a pre-college preparatory program designed for middle school students to promote the pursuit of a college degree. Students are inducted into STEP while they are enrolled in the sixth grade. They remain in STEP for two years, then progress into the University's Upward Bound Program or Upward Bound Math/Science, which assists them through high school. Program graduates who attend The University of Akron are awarded scholarships.

Strive Toward Excellence Program

Upward Bound

Upward Bound is a federally funded TRIO program which provides free academic support services that includes a six week residential summer component for income-eligible students to assure participants will have an opportunity to obtain a post-secondary education.

Upward Bound Math/Science

Located at The University of Akron and utilizing the Goodyear Polymer Center, Upward Bound Math Science is believed to be the only pre-college polymer program in the entire country.

Focusing on polymer science, the program has two interrelated components: a six-week summer residential program, and an academic year follow-up program. This federally funded TRIO program serves 50 high school students, grades 10-12.

Pre-Engineering Program

The Pre-Engineering program at The University of Akron identifies, recruits, and selects Upward Bound, Upward Bound Math Science, and Educational Talent Search students who demonstrate the potential for success in engineering.

If your future plans include a college engineering curriculum and a career in science, mathematics or engineering, The University of Akron Academic Achievement Programs have a unique opportunity designed especially for you. It is called Pre Engineering.