Baucus, Tester announce $542K headed to veterans Upward Bound program

Senators Say Funding will Help Montana Vets Prepare for Postsecondary Education

(Washington D.C.) – The Veterans Upward Bound Program at Montana State University – Northern will receive $542,529 in funding, Montana’s U.S. Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester announced today.

“We honor Montana Veterans by making sure resources are available for them to go back to school,” said Baucus, chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee. “The Veterans Upward Bound Program is a great asset to our state and this funding will go a long way.”

“The Veterans Upward Bound Program is about doing right by the men and women in Montana who have served in our nation’s armed forces,” said Tester, a member of the influential Senate Appropriations Committee and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “It’s a smart investment, and I will continue to fight for funding that helps Veterans build bright futures.”

The Program provides intensive basic skills development, short-term remedial or refresher courses, help in securing support services from other local relevant agencies, core curriculum instruction, personal and academic counseling, tutorial services, academic assistance in secondary school course selection, exposure to cultural events, academic programs, and other educational activities, and mentoring programs.

Senators Baucus and Tester sent a letter to the Senate Appropriations Committee this year to express their support for the Upward Bound program and maintaining strong funding for the program in the 2010 appropriations bill.

Veterans Upward Bound began services in Montana in 1992. Since that time, it has expanded services to over 14 sites statewide and has provided educational services to over 2,000 low-income and first-generation college bound veterans of all ages.

Veterans Upward Bound runs five programs in Montana: the Tribal College Academic Bridge Program, the Cohort Program, the College Transition Assistance Program, the Distance Learning Program, and the Reserve Program.

The grant will be issued by the U.S. Department of Education and officials there anticipate it will be administered over the next five years.