TRUMP vs TRIO: What Students May Lose Due to Budgets Cuts this Upcoming School Year

Higher education will soon undergo changes that will inevitably affect low-income and first-generation students around the nation. The Department of Education (DOE) faces immense funding cuts of around $12 billion due to President Donald Trump’s 2026 budget proposal, according to the National Education Association.

In Trump’s budget plan, federally funded programs like TRIO and GEAR UP are at risk of being eliminated, facing 1.5 billion dollars worth of funding cuts.

Over 6 million students nationwide have received help from TRIO throughout their academic paths – through programs like Upward Bound, Robert E. McNair and the Educational Opportunity Centers – leading them to graduate. Despite currently serving around 880,000 students, the Trump Administration calls these programs “a relic of the past.”

Origins of TRIO

During the 1960s, President Lyndon B. Johnson carried out the “war on poverty” to combat the 20% rate of impoverished Americans. Johnson believed in removing social and cultural barriers to give citizens a fair chance at receiving a fulfilling education.

The Opportunity Act of 1964 led him to create the first TRIO program, Upward Bound (UB). The following year, the Higher Education Act of 1965 formed Talent Search (TS), and in its amendment in 1968, it passed Student Support Services (SSS). The name TRIO derives from the first three programs created to help students in higher education.

Thriving with TRIO SSS

Today, TRIO Student Support Services is a wide-ranging program that serves around 208,343 low-income, first-generation and disabled students throughout the nation. They offer services like academic advising, financial literacy, peer tutoring and mentoring, and transfer planning to increase degree completion for their participants.

At Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) in Reno, Nev., the TRIO SSS came into effect in the fall of 2020, and it continues to make a generational impact by illuminating a bright future for its students every day.

“Without continued funding, there is no guarantee that institutions of higher education can sustain these services or replicate the comprehensive support provided by TRIO programs,” said Dr. Maria Sandra Jimenez, director of TMCC’s TRIO SSS program.

College Ready with Upward Bound

Upward Bound is a preparatory program for high school students looking to attend college annually funded by the DOE. Washoe and Lyon counties programs serve 246 high school students every year. Upward Bound provides support services to participants that include academic advising, tutoring, college and career exploration, and mentorship.

Former Upward Bound participants give insight into how the program helped them grow.

Jose Ríos credits the program with helping him be more outspoken. “They encouraged me to make connections with other people and get out of my comfort zone to push myself,” he said.

Lucia Zúñiga mentions that college was a new concept to her. “I never knew how to go towards that goal [attending college]. [At Upward Bound] you have a lot of people that support you and lead you the right way,” she said.

Stephanie Peterson is a University of Nevada, Reno alum who currently holds a leadership role at Microsoft. Recently, she explained that TRIO was the reason for her success in school.

“I wouldn’t have made it through high school without [Upward Bound],” Peterson said in an interview with UNR. “I wouldn’t have even considered college, and I definitely wouldn’t have thrived in college.”

Recent Risks

As of late May, the Council of Opportunity in Education (COE) conveyed the shocking news that the DOE canceled three Upward Bound projects with a start date of June 1, 2025. According to COE, these cancellations are to be expected for all TRIO programs, not just Upward Bound.

The removal of TRIO will take away students’ ability to navigate throughout high school and college. Low-income, first-generation students need the resources and services that TRIO provides them to have a successful school year.

Jennifer Sims, the director of UB Classic + Math and Science describes TRIO as a program that does enable the next generation of future leaders in the workforce. But to do so, it needs to survive.

“Funding programs like TRIO with a long history of success makes strong financial sense and will help improve the Nevada economy now and well into the future,” she said.