DMPS One of 11 Districts Picked for Iowa Future Ready
Des Moines Public Schools is one of 11 Iowa school districts selected for GEAR UP Iowa Future Ready, a program to increase the number of students prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. Administered by the Iowa College Student Aid Commission, the new initiative is made possible thanks to $5 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan.
“This program means we will be able to develop Postsecondary Success Labs in each high school, similar to our FLEX Labs,” said Mike Huguelet, Counseling & Postsecondary Success Coordinator. “The Postsecondary Success Labs will allow students to access daily support to complete critical postsecondary planning tasks throughout their high school careers.”
The Postsecondary Success Labs will be located at each comprehensive high school as well as one at Central Campus to serve students from there, Central Academy, and Virtual Campus. Supports that will be provided to students include:
- Completing career assessments
- Researching postsecondary pathways
- Submitting the FAFSA application
- Conduct mock interviews
- Completing applications to vocational or technical training programs
- Completing college & scholarship applications
Des Moines Public Schools will receive between $300-340,000 in funds each year through 2025.
Other school districts selected for the new program are Centerville, Clinton, Columbus Junction, Davenport, Davis County, Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Saydel, South Tama, and Storm Lake. GEAR UP Iowa Future Ready will guide students in those schools from ninth grade through their first year of postsecondary education.
Iowa College Aid will administer GEAR UP Iowa Future Ready in partnership with the Iowa Department of Education and other state agencies; local school districts; postsecondary educational institutions; and community organizations, businesses, and industries.