Serving the Underserved: Bringing Education Opportunity Centers to Greenville

Greenville, S.C. (January 26, 2010) – At its first quarter board of visitors meeting, the University Center of Greenville (UCG) partnered with Education Opportunity Centers (EOCs) expert Pamela Boisvert for informative presentation.

Boisvert is the Vice President for Higher Education Access Services for the Colleges of Worchester Consortium, a collaborative organization in Massachusetts with a similar structure to UCG. See her bio below for more information.

Boisvert, and UCG President Dr. Fred Baus, addressed the issue of breaking down barriers to higher education to the Board of Visitors in attendance. Using the EOCs, institutions can tap into federal funding through grants to develop strategies and programs targeting the individuals that typically do not access higher education.

The mission of UCG is to increase the number of baccalaureate degree holders per capita, and its leadership has identified utilizing Greenville’s potential eligibility for EOCs, as a strategy for improvement. For more information, visit www.ucgreenville.org.

Contact: Dr. Fred Baus
(864) 250-1111

University Center of Greenville

The University Center of Greenville is a consortium of higher education institutions dedicated to increasing access to educational opportunities for the citizens of the Upstate of South Carolina. UCG offers 76 undergraduate and graduate degrees through Clemson, Furman, Lander, Medical University of South Carolina, South Carolina State, University of South Carolina, and the University of South Carolina Upstate. For more information, please call 864.250.1111 or visit their website at:www.ucgreenville.org.

BIOGRAPHY — Pamela Boisvert

Pamela Boisvert is the vice president for Higher Education Access Services at the Colleges of Worcester Consortium, Inc., in Worcester, Massachusetts. Pam oversees the Consortium’s higher education access services and community engagement activities. She is the state project director for the Educational Opportunity Centers for Massachusetts and the Consortium’s Educational Talent Search project, both state-wide, federally funded TRIO programs. She is also responsible for the Consortium’s federally funded GEAR UP program in three cities, in partnership with the Massachusetts Dept. of Higher Education’s state GEAR UP grant. Pam also oversees the Consortium’s Careers Plus program and local public school-based partnerships.

Pam is a past president of the New England Educational Opportunity Association, and a founder and past president of the Massachusetts Educational Opportunity Association. She is national chair of the Washington-based Council for Opportunity in Education’s financial aid sub-committee, and also serves on the COE faculty for training in TRIO legislation and regulations.

Pam is a member of the Board of Directors of the Greater Worcester Community Foundation, Girls’ Inc., and serves on many local and state task forces and committees. She is a frequent presenter on topics related to higher education access at state and national conferences, and has testified before Congress regarding access to education for adult students.

She is the author of an article entitled “Leveraging Resources to Create Comprehensive Access Services” which appeared in the Jossey Bass publication, “Access to Higher Education through Consortia” published in the summer of 2007.

Pam holds a BA degree in psychology from Newton College of the Sacred Heart, and an MA degree in human services administration from Worcester State College. She has been involved with higher education access services for more than 25 years.