The GEAR UP program is working for students in Washington State.

Washington State GEAR UP is continuously evaluating the impact of services on student outcomes. We do this in the following ways:

  • Vela Institute, our external evaluator, conducts and analyzes annual student and educator surveys.
  • We participate as a founding member in the Career and College Readiness Evaluation Consortium, a longitudinal study of how GEAR UP services impact high school graduation, FAFSA completion, college enrollment, and persistence.
  • Ongoing data collection and analysis to meet annual reporting requirements for the Department of Education.

View Report: Washington State GEAR UP Impact Analysis: Class of 2017 

STUDENT FEEDBACK

Vela Institute conducted two student surveys in the spring of 2022. The Class of 2023 (juniors) and the Class of 2022 (seniors) were asked about their plans and where they most needed assistance and support. The surveys are being used to help the GEAR UP staff provide targeted support to the Class of 2023.

View Report: 2021-2022 Student Survey Overview: High School Juniors

View Report: 2021-2022 Senior Exit Survey Overview

GEAR UP'S EFFECTIVENESS

Established in 2010, the College and Career Readiness Evaluation Consortium (CCREC) is a grantee-led initiative to evaluate GEAR UP. The founding 13-member grants set the infrastructure for a longitudinal, multi-grant, collaborative evaluation.

In 2022, CCREC conducted a longitudinal, multi-state evaluation examining relationships between GEAR UP service activities and three key outcomes: FAFSA completion, high school graduation, and postsecondary enrollment.

Key Findings:

  • Financial Aid Counseling was the strongest predictor across all three outcomes.
  • Comprehensive Mentoring had a positive relationship across all three outcomes for all samples.
  • Comprehensive Mentoring, Financial Aid Counseling, Counseling/Advising, and Summer Programs positively correlated with postsecondary enrollment across all samples.
  • Tutoring/Homework Assistance, while negatively associated with FAFSA completion and postsecondary enrollment, remains a vital GEAR UP service for further examination.
  • FAFSA completion rates were about five percentage points higher than the national average.
  • Postsecondary enrollment rates were aligned with national postsecondary outcomes.

View the Summary of Results: Examining Relationships Between Service Activities and Student Success Outcomes