UA’s REACH Director Committed to Helping Students from Foster Care

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama’s Office of the Provost has selected Shannon Hubbard to be the new coordinator of Alabama REACH, the innovative and nationally known program that assists foster-care and other disadvantaged children in coming to and succeeding at the University.

Hubbard, formerly the senior social work supervisor at the Tuscaloosa County Department of Human Resources, has a bachelor’s and a master’s degrees in social work from UA. Her work for Tuscaloosa County has involved working with foster-care children as well as supervising foster-care resource workers.

 Alabama REACH is a comprehensive support program designed to empower current and former foster youth, orphans, emancipated minors and wards of the state of Alabama to pursue higher education and graduate from college.

It serves as a resource hub to help students access needed services on campus, as well as cultivate meaningful relationships off campus. REACH’s goal is to graduate individuals who will be successful personally and professionally.

 “The programmatic goal of REACH is to support students who come from alternative living arrangements before pursuing and graduating from college, which can increase the likelihood of their personal and professional success,” Hubbard said.

“As REACH scholars continue graduating from college, the hope is that they find stable employment and/or continue their education as well as develop stability and permanency by retaining sufficient income, adequate housing and productive relationships.”

The program is three-fold. The components are REACH Back (future students), REACH Up (current students) and REACH Out (community members), bridging high school to post secondary to community.

REACH serves as a resource hub to help students access the needed services on campus as well as cultivate meaningful relationships off campus. In REACH Back, students in the seventh- through 12th grades are encouraged to develop a plan that will lead to admission to UA. REACH Up assists current students with financial aid and other aspects of campus life. REACH Out draws community members in to help students with the program.

For more information, go to http://www.reach.ua.edu/.