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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 $28,000, where neither parent graduated
from college. More than 2,700 TRIO Programs currently serve nearly
866,000 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. Twenty-two thousand students with disabilities and more than
25,000 U.S. veterans are currently enrolled in the TRIO Programs as
well.
How it Works:
Over 1,000 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. |
