Lyndon Institute has been awarded a five-year grant totaling $1.47 million from the U.S. Department of Education to help serve first-generation and/or moderate-income students. This year’s grant competition was one of the most competitive ever - 950 programs were funded out of more than 1,600 applications. Lyndon Institute will use this grant to start its own Upward Bound program on-site and is currently hiring staff to direct and manage the program. The goal of Upward Bound is to increase the rate at which participants complete secondary education and enroll in, and graduate from, institutions of postsecondary education. The 12-month program provides assistance with high school course selection, study skills, SAT preparation, college and career information, college selection, and financial aid applications. Students will also have the opportunity to tour colleges, volunteer in their community, and attend various student leadership conferences. This federal grant will support LI’s mission to “inspire their students to become accomplished learners, creative thinkers, and compassionate community members”.

Lyndon Institute began in 1867 as the Lyndon Literary and Biblical Institution. Its first academic term was in 1870. In the more than 150 years since, the campus has served as home to the Lyndon Commercial College in 1886, and the Vermont School of Agriculture. The latter was founded in 1910 by Theodore N. Vail, the first president of New England Telephone Company and the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T).

In 1923, the school officially became Lyndon Institute. From 1923 to 1951, the Institute provided both secondary and post-secondary educational programs to area students. In 1951, the post-secondary programs became Lyndon Teachers College which would later become Lyndon State College. Lyndon Institute looks to the future with its strategic plan, a forward-thinking document that captures the best of the school's past while preparing the school for the next generation of students.

Upward Bound is one of the federally funded TRIO programs through the US. Department of Education and is free for any eligible participating student. The TRIO Programs (initially just three programs) are funded under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965. TRIO students are first-generation, college-bound, and from moderate-income families and/or are students with disabilities. TRIO Upward Bound programs across the nation have supported millions of high school students from moderate-income homes to become the first in their families to earn a college degree. Established as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, these programs have invited high school students in every state to study on a college campus. During the school year, students have access to tutoring and academic counseling to keep them on track for graduation, and during the summer, they move into residence halls and enroll in classes designed to prepare them for the year ahead.

Vermont’s TRIO programs are educational opportunity programs assisting over 7,000 middle school, high school, and college-bound adults throughout Vermont. These programs include Talent Search, Educational Opportunity Centers, and GEAR UP, all hosted by VSAC, and the college-based Student Support Services and Upward Bound. Combined, these programs receive over $9.2 million dollars in federal funds to promote access to and success in higher education for Vermont students.

The Lyndon Institute Upward Bound program is committed to providing participants with the academic background, college preparatory experiences, and support needed to succeed in college immediately after high school. The program will work annually with 60 students who are dedicated to achieving their post-secondary goals. Students will spend six weeks of their summer living on the campus of NVU - Lyndon where they take college preparatory courses, hold volunteer work-study positions in the community, and participate in activities on campus while living in the residence halls. Upward Bound students also participate in community service activities, financial aid workshops, leadership and cultural events, and college tours throughout the school year.