Getting Involved in Our Community
Becoming a GEAR UP CoachWhat We do
Roles & Responsibilities
As part of a “college-positive” organization dedicated to the success of our students, our GEAR UP coaches actively engage with students as both tutors and mentors.
Ready to Apply?
We recruit new Coaches every year in the fall and spring.
Check out our PennClubs page for a link to the application and details about next steps.
School-Day vs After-School
As part of our active engagement within the community, our coaches work directly within our partner schools of West Philadelphia High and School of the Future both during and after the school day. Both roles offer opportunities to establish connections with teachers and students while exposing our coaches to West Philadelphia.
Our school-day coaches work closely together with teachers in various subjects to support students within the classroom in an academically focused manner. On the other hand, after-school coaches work together with students in a less-structured environment suited for open dialogues on a student’s future plans in addition to tutoring, application writing, and much more.
Volunteer, Work-Study, and Non-Work Study Positions
GEAR UP coaches can work as volunteers, work-study, or paid non-work-study workers. Regardless of whether or not they are paid, all of our coaches have the same opportunities and responsibilities. The only difference lies within our application process (which adds on an interview process) to determine eligibility for pay.
Social Media & Marketing Committee
GEAR UP’s Social Media & Marketing Committee is in charge of running our organization’s social media pages (Facebook & Instagram) along with other sources of outreach with our community. Those who are interested in photography, videography, and digital media design are encouraged to join! Past and current projects include our Coach Highlight Series, newsletters, and Days in the Life’s among others.
Curriculum and Training Committee
Curriculum and Training Committee is focused on the development of learning content for students, teachers, and coachers. With the rising need for virtualized content, the C&T committee had focused much of its time to create videos to help teachers navigate this new landscape along with those focused on the application process for students.
Trips and Events Committee
Historically, the Trips and Events Committee has brought our students to various college campuses for tours as well as college and career fairs. In light of current times, our committee members will continue to organize and host these events virtually through webinars and other mediums to expose our students to the various opportunites they have access to.
“GEAR UP had a presence in my school and tangentially influenced my collegiate decisions, and I think being there for someone that could use the help is the best way to pass that sort of mentorship forward.”
“The enthusiasm and genuine curiosity I received from many students after giving a presentation my on my college experience is my favorite GEAR UP memory so far.”
“The greatest reward of working with high school students is building relationships with extraordinary youth and learning from each other.”
“My favorite memory so far was helping a student with her Penn specific essay. It was just so awesome getting to know such a driven student and help her through the process that I went through not too long ago!”