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Congressman Kline checks on St. Olaf TRiO students

By David Gonnerman '90
August 31, 2007

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Shortly before meeting with students, Kathy Glampe '92 (left) tells Rep. John Kline about the TRiO program that she directs on campus. On the right is St. Olaf College President David R. Anderson '74. In the background is faculty member Mark Schelske.
Minnesota Rep. John Kline, a member of the Education Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives, visited St. Olaf Aug. 23 to see first-hand the work of the federally funded TRiO programs that help students overcome class, social and cultural barriers to higher education. The programs, which help students make a seamless transition from high school to college, include GEAR UP, Upward Bound and Education Talent Search. And at the college level, the Student Support Services program helps students adjust to their new academic experience.

Kline toured biology labs where 37 SSS students were on the tail end of a five-week program, called Summer Bridge, that helps them get a jump on their college careers that begin this fall. Kline chatted with students (including one from his native Texas) as they worked on their soil-testing experiments. He then related to the group how important it is that they apply themselves while enjoying the college experience. Later he met with seniors to hear firsthand how TRiO has changed their lives.

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Glampe and Kline joke with Summer Bridge participant Isaac Tut '11.
"You're heroes," Kline told the four TRiO participants who told him stories about overcoming class, social and cultural barriers to higher education by attending St. Olaf with the support of TRiO. "There's no doubt that this program is fundamentally changing the lives of kids," he said. "[TRiO] is bringing kids to college who at one point had no idea about their options." These programs are not only well-intentioned, he added, but successful.

"Rep. Kline was encouraging to the students and personable in his individual meetings with them,? says Kathy Glampe '92, the director of SSS at St. Olaf who extended the invitation to Kline. "And he affirmed once again the importance that TRiO plays in the lives of low-income, first-generation students, and students with disabilities. We are honored to have him represent TRiO in Congress."

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St. Olaf Professor of Biology Charles Umbanhowar Jr. (second from right) assists this year's Summer Bridge students with their lab research.
After 14 years St. Olaf's Summer Bridge program is the longest-running residential SSS program in Minnesota. In addition to taking a biology course, students also work on writing skills and refine their study techniques. At least 70 percent of all students who participated in the program since 1998 have graduated from St. Olaf in six years, compared to the national graduation rate for similar dependent college students of just under 25 percent.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.