All three of Horta's older siblings joined the program, motivating him to uphold the family tradition.

“My siblings, particularly my older brother, told me about how it's tutoring, if you ever need help with anything, they’re there for you,” Horta said. “It just felt like the program for me.”

The program offers a variety of educational and preparation resources, but it is also a community and a great place to make friends, Horta said. He said the program also gave him a lot of connections at MSU going into his freshman year.

According to program director Stephanie Anthony, Upward Bound shut down in 2017 after the university lost its federal funding grant. The associate provost at the time re-opened Upward Bound as an institutional program following public outcry from the community.

“I saw the opening and I said, ‘oh my gosh, I love this program,’" Anthony said. "I love it because I knew that it worked. And I applied for it.”

Anthony said programs like this are important because they provide exposure to college resources for students that might not experience it otherwise. She said the goal is to change the trajectory of students’ lives by building confidence.

“When someone goes into an environment and they have not had the same tools economically or in other ways that other students might have, it can be overwhelming and very frightening,” Anthony said. “We don’t want people to be discouraged. We want them to be encouraged and to feel as though ‘I can make it.’”

Psychology freshman Maria Quintero joined Upward Bound in her freshman year of high school, following in her older sisters’ footsteps. She said the program provided her with a strong community entering college.

“You’re surrounded by people that also want to go to college, and they’re also looking for those resources,” Quintero said. “You also build that community once you actually go into college.”

For many students, connections from the program last even after they have left. Quintero said Anthony has continued to be a helpful contact during her time at MSU.

“She always provided us with a lot of different resources and pushed us into the right direction if we needed something,” Quintero said. “I was always emailing her if I needed anything.”

Computer science sophomore Bilal Noori joined Upward Bound during high school and now works as a TA for the program. He said it felt mandatory to help other students after his own experience in the program.

“Upward Bound has helped me so much,” Noori said. “I just felt like I have to work and give back to Upward Bound and help the upcoming students to pursue college.”

The program showed Noori that college is good and can help lead someone to a better life. Noori said this exposure is why programs like Upward Bound are important. 

Noori works with students to make sure they are doing well in life and on the right path with their education. He said he monitors their grades as well as checks in to see if they are healthy in other aspects of their life beyond education.

“To me, Upward Bound always felt like a family,” Noori said. “It’s a community where I belong. They are very helpful and supportive of everything I do.”