The
following information was provided by Council
for Opportunity in Education (COE).
WHAT IS TRIO?
TRIO
is Educational Opportunity for Low-Income and Disabled Americans.
Our
nation has asserted a commitment to providing educational opportunity for
all Americans regardless of race, ethnic background or economic circumstance.
In support of this commitment, Congress established a series of programs
to help low-income Americans enter college, graduate and move on to participate
more fully in America's economic and social life. These Programs are
funded under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and are referred
to as
the TRIO Programs (initially just three programs). While student financial
aid programs help students overcome financial barriers to higher education, TRIO
programs help students overcome class, social and cultural barriers to higher
education.
Who
is Served
As
mandated by Congress, two-thirds of the students served must come from families
with incomes under $24,000, where neither parent graduated
from
college. Over 2,600 TRIO Programs currently serve nearly 872,000
low-income Americans. Many programs serve students in grades six through
12. Thirty-seven
percent of TRIO students are Whites, 35% are African-Americans, 19%
are Hispanics, 4% are Native Americans, 4% are Asian-Americans, and
1% are listed as "Other," including multiracial
students. Sixteen thousand students with disabilities and more than
25,000 U.S. veterans are currently enrolled in the TRIO Programs as well. For
more
race and ethnicity data for each TRIO Program (Upward Bound, UB Math/Science,
SSS, Talent Search, EOC, and McNair), see “Racial and Ethnic
Diversity in the Federal TRIO Programs,” a News You Can Use
fact sheet from the National TRIO Clearinghouse.
How it Works
Over
1,200 colleges, universities, community colleges and agencies now offer TRIO
Programs in America. TRIO funds are distributed to institutions
through
competitive grants.
Evidence
of Achievement
Students
in the Upward Bound program are four times more likely to earn an undergraduate
degree than those students from similar backgrounds who did not participate
in TRIO; nearly 20 percent of all Black and Hispanic freshmen who entered college
in 1981 received assistance through the TRIO Talent Search or EOC programs;
students in the TRIO Student Support Services program are more than twice as
likely to remain in college than those students from similar backgrounds who
did not participate in the program.
TRIO
PROGRAMS AT A GLANCE
Students enrolled in today's TRIO Programs mirror our nation's
mutli-cultural and multiethnic society. Thirty-seven percent
of TRIO students are
White, 35% are African-American, 19% are Hispanic, 4% are Native
American and
4% are Asian-American. Sixteen thousand TRIO students are disabled.
TRIO college graduates are working in business, industry, government,
medicine, law, education, communcations, sales, finance,
politics, transportation, publishing, law enforcement, computer science
andtechnology, engineering
and accounting.
Talent
Search
Talent Search programs serve young people in grades
six through 12.
In addition to counseling, participants receive information
about college admissions requirements, scholarships
and various student
financial
aid programs. This early intervention program helps
people from families with incomes under
$24,000 (where neither parent graduated from college)
to better understand their educational opportunities
and options. Over
387,604 Americans
are
enrolled in 471 Talent Search TRIO programs.
Upward
Bound
Upward
Bound helps young students to prepare for higher education. Participants
receive instruction in literature, composition, mathematics and science on
college campuses after school, on Saturdays and during the summer. Currently,
770 programs are in operation throughout the United States.
Upward
Bound Math Science
Upward
Bound Math Science helps students from low-income families to strengthen
math and science skills. In addition, students learn computer technology
as well as English, foreign language and study skills. Over 123 programs
are serving students throughout the country.
Veterans
Upward Bound
Veterans
Upward Bound programs provide intensive basic skills development and short-term
remedial courses for military veterans to help them successfully transition
to postsecondary education. Veterans learn how to secure support from available
resources such as the Veterans Administration, veterans associations, and
various state and local agencies that serve veterans.
Student
Support Services
Student Support Services helps low-income students
to stay in college until they earn their
baccalaureate degrees. Participants,
who
include disabled
college students, receive tutoring, counseling
and remedial instruction. Students are
now being served
at 938 colleges and universities
nationwide.
Educational
Opportunity Centers
Educational
Opportunity Centers located throughout the country primarily serve displaced
or underemployed workers from families with incomes under $24,000. These
Centers help people to choose a college and a suitable financial aid program.
There are 139 Educational Opportunity Centers in America serving 217,836
individuals.
Ronald
E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement
Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement
programs are designed to encourage low-income
students and
minority undergraduates
to
consider careers
in college teaching as well as prepare
for doctoral study. Students who participate
in
this program are
provided with research opportunities
and faculty mentors.
This program was named in honor of the
astronaut that died in the 1986 space-shuttle
explosion.
Currently there are 156 programs,
serving
3,774
students.
Upward
Bound is College Bound.
