Over the next seven years, the University of Hawaii-West Oahu plans to offer support and assistance to a cohort of about 400 Nanakuli seventh-graders in hopes of helping them get into college — and then helping them earn a degree.

The project is going forward thanks to a new $368,000 U.S. Department of Education grant, renewable annually, which is aimed at putting college within reach for disadvantaged or at-risk students.

This is the first time UH-West Oahu has been awarded GEAR UP funds, which support mentoring and college awareness for youth.

If renewed for seven years as expected, the total grant will be $2.6 million.

The UH system has had a GEAR UP program since 2000 that works with low-income students to help them overcome significant barriers for getting into college, including the cost.

This year UH got $3.4 million for its statewide efforts.

The seven-year grant total, which requires annual approval, totals $22 million.

"We’re very happy that Hawaii can continue to serve its low-income students and prepare for college success," said Karen Lee, executive director of the Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education, which works to strengthen the "education pipeline" from early childhood to college.

The GEAR UP grants were announced Friday.

In all, $77 million was awarded to 19 states for GEAR UP — or Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs. Another $100 million was awarded for 47 partnership grants, which is what UH-West Oahu received.

GEAR UP requires that partnership grants give students a range of services aimed at preparing them for college, such as college counseling, tutoring and summer programs that help students succeed in college-level courses.

For the Nanakuli cohort, UH-West Oahu’s GEAR UP program will focus on skills aimed at increasing the likelihood that students will be "able to enter college," said Joseph Mobley, UH-West Oahu interim vice chancellor for academic affairs.

"Part of it is focusing on the parents. Most of the parents have never been to college," he said.

The goal of the program is to reach a 75 percent college-going rate for the cohort. Nanakuli High’s college-going rate in 2010 was 27 percent.