Benefits Of The TRIO Programs

Introduction

Children in lower income areas, traditionally, do not have equitable resources, services and opportunities as the students in more affluent areas (Fram, Miller-Cribbs, & Van Horn, 2007). It is not a secret that poverty exists in America. It seems to be a common expectation that in, some schools, teachers will have extra books, supplies and snacks on hand for their students who lack these basic items. In fact, for some students, the lack of basic necessities is an everyday occurrence that extends far beyond the pencils and paper they need in the classroom. According to one article by Belfanz (2009), “in all minority inner-city schools in high-poverty neighborhoods, most entering students lack a good middle school education and

Fortunately, many students have taken advantage of the education afforded to them by the TRIO Programs. Before the TRIO Programs colleges and universities were privatized and there were not as many financial options for families to send their children to college. Suffering from an undereducated population, many at-risk youths were forced to remain in the same poor areas and work at minimum wage jobs without benefits and resources which meant the cycle of poverty would continue. The passing of “the Higher Education Act of 1965 was arguably the most important change, as it extended need-based financial assistance to the general population for the first time” (Brock, 2010). The passage of this act was an enormous development which changed the face of the higher education system. The social and economic conditions that bolstered such a change continue to show improvement in the increased enrollment and graduation rates of non-traditional

The comprehensive report followed higher education students for two years and was limited to those who were enrolled in postsecondary education “these students were followed up in 1992 and 1994 [sic], resulting in a wide range of information regarding their academic persistence and degree attainment five years after entering postsecondary education” (Balz and Esten, 1998). The results of the study indicated that nearly 75 percent of the students within the demographic targeted by the legislation completed their postsecondary education. The same study revealed that before the program was enacted, the graduation rate had been less than 50% of