$1.1M grant to help Ogden students

OGDEN (AP) — Disadvantaged students in the Ogden School District will be getting a little help with their college goals in the form of a $1.1 million federal grant.

The TRIO Grant will fund a program called Talent Search, intended help students from low-income homes and students with disabilities progress from middle school through high school and into college.

Kate Bideaux, the district's secondary schools grant facilitator, said the district needs the program. Currently, only 50 percent of Ogden School District's high school graduates go to college.

"The program is a direct link to universities, and when kids connect with colleges, they will benefit greatly," she said.

The money, which will be disbursed over five years, will be used in various ways, including financial aid, counseling, workshops, tutoring, visits to college campuses and preparation for college-entrance exams.

The U.S. Department of Education awarded the grant to Weber State University, which will have to reapply for it every four years, said Ruth Patino Stubbs, educational talent search coordinator at Weber State.

So far, 200 students have been accepted since the application process started in September. Stubbs said she hopes to have 400 children in the program by year's end.