Chieftain, Volume 17, Number 1, September 1968 Page: 1
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McMURRY COLLEGE
VfSL
Radford Memorial Building
McMURRY INVESTS IN THE FUTURE
Linda Gilliam
Assisted by the Upward Bound Staff
"One of America's greatest wastes occurs when capable young people
who could succeed in college never attend because of the psychological,
social, and physical condition of poverty backgrounds. This waste is
especially cruel when we remember that more than ever before, higher
education holds the key to so many jobs in the future . . . UPWARD
BOUND is designed to cut into this waste and to see if substantial num-
bers of potentially successful youngsters can profit from a real chance
at a higher education." Sargeant Schriver—former director of the Office
of Economic Opportunity.
Upward Bound generated a
great deal of excitement on Mc-
Murry's campus this summer. The
purpose of this federally funded
program is principally to solve
problems of educational deficien-
cies existing in disadvantaged com-
munities. It speaks to why young
people drop out of school, why pov-
erty area residents have a larger
percentage of dropouts than do
other areas.
On June 10th, forty-four high
school students arrived on the Mc-
Murry College campus. Drawn
from the tenth and eleventh grades
of Abilene and a fifty mile radius,
twenty-one young women and
twenty-three young men piled out
of cars carrying everything from
guitars to boxes of clothes—eager
to find out what it was like to live
in college dormitories and to take
part in college life. These students
are special. High school counselors,
teachers, and neighborhood youth
center workers identified them as
economically deprived students
with above-average ability whose
achievement has been disappoint-
ingly low.
MOTIVATION
These students are known to
posses energy, enthusiasm, good
minds, but they lack motivation to
obtain that higher education which
is increasingly essential in our
society.
Sherry Bevins, McMurry junior
English major, who worked as a
tutor-counselor with the program,
has always believed that even
though a person was poor, if he
wanted to go to college, he could do
so by working. "But this summer,"
Sherry said, "I realized it takes
more than work and money. Most
of these students came with little
desire to attend college; most of
them now are returning to their
high schools eager to do well aca-
demically and to attend college."
Upward Bound student Ernest
Carrasco reported, "I do want to go
to college, but I probably couldn't
make it without the help I'm receiv-
ing here. My dreams are now more
a reality than a dream."
Billy Enriquez, an Abilene High
senior, says, "Reading has helped
me a lot. When the program first
started I read 150 words a minute;
now I read 435 words a minute and
understand better what I read."
Billy first wanted to be a mechanic.
Now he plans to attend college and
hopes to become a mechanical
engineer.
Don Burton, another Upward
Bound student, talked about the
weekly convocation movie and
about art films shown in Mr. Dar-
rell's class. "Before, if I saw a
movie like 'All the King's Men',"
Don said, "I either liked it or I
didn't like it. Now I've learned to
understand a film, how to interpret
it, how to discover what values the
film affirms or criticizes. And to
ask how the film relates to real
life."
Many students discussed the
benefits of living in an integrated
situation. For example, Burton,
who will transfer from Abilene's
Negro school, Woodson (now
closed) to Cooper High, says, "I
feel that this summer's involve-
ment in an integrated program will
help me feel more confident next
fall."
Believing that some people think
of Upward Bound students as
hoodlums and thugs, Frances Kee-
see, an Abilene High junior, de-
Continued on Page 2
Upward Bound director. Dr. Betty
Ann Bradley counsels with student
Billy Enriquez.
LINDA GILLIAM has been alumni
office secretary since her graduation
from McMurry in January '68. Dr.
Betty Ann Bradley, Professor Bob Dar-
rell, and the Upward Bound staff have
assisted in the preparation of this
article.
VOLUME 17 — NUMBER 1
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McMurry College. Chieftain, Volume 17, Number 1, September 1968, periodical, September 1968; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth238654/m1/1/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting McMurry University Library.