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Sylvania ROOTS staff celebrates renewal of federal grant

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Despite the fast pace that coincides with the launch of fall term, Sylvania Campus staff took time on Sept. 16 to celebrate a big win – the renewal of a five-year U.S. Department of Education Trio Student Support Service grant of $1.2 million  for its ROOTS program.

Sylvania’s Lynn Montoya, ROOTS director, and Michael Morrow, ROOTS Financial Aid liaison, celebrate the renewal of their five-year Department of Education ROOTS grant.

“This funding will enable us to continue our work with students,” said Lynn Montoya, director of Sylvania’s ROOTS program, “that has led 86 percent of them to succeed at PCC and 42 percent to transfer to four-year universities in the past year.”

ROOTS is a federally-funded program that increases the retention, graduation and transfer rates of academically under-prepared low-income and first-generation students and students with disabilities. The program has been in place at the Sylvania Campus for nine years. The program serves 170 students at Sylvania and could grow by 400 students in the next four years of the grant.