TRIO Student Support Services program receives over $2 million in funding

GREENVILLE, SC – August 25, 2010 – Greenville Technical College¹s TRIO Student Support Services program has received funding from the U.S. Department of Education, worth $403,671 annually for the next five years. The grant totals more than $2 million over the five-year period.
 
³Greenville Tech¹s mission is to drive personal and economic growth through learning,² says Selena Blair, director of the TRIO Student Support Services program. ³Student success is critical to that mission, and this funding ensures that the TRIO programs, which help students overcome class, social and cultural barriers to higher education, can continue to help students succeed in college and in life.²
 
In support of the nation¹s commitment to providing educational opportunity for all Americans regardless of race, background or economic circumstances, Congress established a series of programs to help low-income Americans enter college, graduate and move on to participate more fully in America¹s 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 since originally, there were just three programs.
 
As mandated by Congress, two-thirds of the students served in TRIO programs must come from low-income families where neither parent graduated from college with a bachelor¹s degree. Over 1,000 colleges, community colleges, and agencies now offer TRIO programs.
 
Funds are distributed to those organizations through a competitive grant process. This year, 1,475 organizations submitted applications, and only
1,026 are receiving funding.
 
The TRIO programs at Greenville Tech include Student Support Services, where students can find tutoring, counseling, child care, college transfer assistance, and other support and Upward Bound, helping students develop skills as they prepare to transition from high school to college.