The Start Point: A Grounded Theory Study of Aspirations and Needs of TRIO Students at the Point of Entry into a Postsecondary Enrollment or Postsecondary Attainment Program

Since 1965, federally-funded TRIO programs in the United States have served disadvantaged students to promote their postsecondary enrollment and postsecondary degree attainment. The purpose of this study was to examine the aspirations and needs of 94 students at their point of entry into a TRIO program. Students’ perspectives were considered against the purposes of the TRIO programs, as stated in U.S. legislation and as these programs have evolved. Employing a grounded theory methodology, the researcher explored what students envision for their futures and how students’ perspectives support the purposes of TRIO programs. The major finding that emerged from the analysis of the evolution of TRIO programs is the broadening and extending of TRIO programs along five dimensions. The four major findings that emerged from the analysis of students’ written statements are, first, the focus on the self in the abstract; second, the focus on the family in the abstract; third, first-generation college as an honor; and fourth, students’ perspectives on their futures beyond the postsecondary enrollment and postsecondary attainment purposes of TRIO programs. Implications of the findings and of the resulting theory for TRIO program management and for federal policy are presented, as are suggestions for further research

Public colleges for educational access in Colorado

2014 Summer.This thesis explores the frameworks for university-funded educational access programs in Colorado. Through the use of qualitative methods, I conduct a case study of 6 access programs, their practitioners, and their undergraduate student volunteers. I examine the values and social position of access practitioners as well as their ability to work across traditional social and institutional boundaries. Employing a network analytic approach, I examine and conceptualize the structure and connectivity of both federal Trio and university-funded access programs. My research shows that both Trio and access programs are well positioned for mutually beneficial collaborations. This includes access providing services for Trio parents and families and Trio sharing program evaluation metrics with access programs. Additionally, access programs have a unique ability capacity to recruit and retain students because of their position within universities. Finally, recommendations are made for access program transferability and sustainability. Near-peer mentoring and provide culturally-relevant programs are highly exportable aspects of access programs. In order to sustain access programs, practitioners should link their program to university strategic priorities while also involving high-level university officials in program development and assessment

TRIO Programs and Beyond: Integrating Student-Centric Programs and Strategies

The Federal TRIO Programs are Federal outreach and student services programs designed to identify and provide services for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) programs provide opportunities for academic development, assist students with basic college requirements, and motivate students toward the successful completion of their postsecondary education. Using a holistic approach to intrusive advising, SSS programs take participants from students to scholars to professionals, offering first-generation, income-eligible, and disabled students individualized pathways to success. This presentation explains the objectives of SSS programs, offering best practices that demonstrate how the program increases its cohorts\u27 retention, academic standing, and graduation rates. Collaboration with student affairs and academic affairs become key. It then gives higher education institutions without TRIO programs strategies to include and/or strengthen proactive intervention for students who need it most--first-generation college students and underrepresented students of color or of lower socioeconomic status

Winthrop’s McNair Scholars Program Receives Third Round of Funding to Prepare Students for Ph.D. Programs

Winthrop’s Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program received its third round of federal funding from the U.S. Department of Education. This latest TRiO grant renewal contained a funding increase of nearly $6,000, bringing the program’s total award to$232,265 each year for five years. The Winthrop McNair Scholars program prepares 30 first generation, low-income, and underrepresented undergraduates to be successful in Ph.D. programs

UMN Morris Awarded $1.3M for Summit Scholars Program

The U.S. Department of Education has announced that the University of Minnesota Morris will receive its second federal Student Support Services (SSS) grant to help more students succeed in and graduate from college. UMN Morris will receive $1.3 million to support its TRIO SSS program, Summit Scholars—$261,888 was awarded in the first of the five-year grant

Science Outreach Collaboration with Upward Bound

As part of a science outreach collaboration with Upward Bound, a federal TRIO program that helps first-generation and low-income high school students prepare for postsecondary education, a Saturday symposium event was hosted where Upward Bound students were provided with hands-on, interactive science activities, in fields such as a biology, in order to encourage them to pursue careers in science

Easterner, Volume 53, No. 30 June 7, 2001

This issue of the Easterner contains articles about the Federal TRIO program and student successes, Professor Dr. Jeanne Small and her team\u27s research biological warfare, additional emergency lights on campus, Cheney Normal School Heritage Center and its new bell, post-graduation transition, the Summer Academy, soccer team recruits, and senior Ryan Cole wins All-American in javelin throw.https://dc.ewu.edu/student_newspapers/2366/thumbnail.jp

THE UNMET NEEDS OF ACADEMIC SUPPORT SERVICES FOR STUDENTS AT HOLMES COMMUNITY COLLEGE ON THE GOODMAN CAMPUS

This paper presents a three-manuscript dissertation exploring the unmet needs for academic support of TRIO-eligible college students on the Goodman Campus of Holmes Community College (HCC) in Mississippi. The quantitative study uses descriptive and comparative statistic techniques to analyze two data sets, including the academic success of students who are qualified, applied for, and were selected for HCC TRIO SSS in 2017-18 and the success of students who are qualified, applied for, but were not selected for 2017-18 federal program. The aggregate academic successes, as measured by grade-point average (GPA), was the first comparison of the two groups. This study also compared the two groups’ academic success by gender, which was the subsequent comparison.This research study found that the GPAs of the students who are qualified, applied for, and were selected for the program were significantly higher than the students who are qualified, applied for, but were not selected for 2017-2018 HCC TRIO program. This manuscript focused on the attainments of students who participate in student support service programs, which including tutoring, financial literacy, mentoring, and other pre- and postcollege services. They have higher GPAs and are more successful completing post-secondary education. At the conclusion of the study, the researcher provides several recommendations for practitioners to use

GSU Awarded McNair Grant

They may not know it yet, but Governors State University college students just got a serious boost to their post-graduate futures— nearly one million dollars in grant money from the Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement program. The McNair program is one of several federal TRIO programs. It is specifically designed to prepare disadvantaged students who have strong academic potential for doctoral studies. Governors State is one of only four new institutions in the nation to be awarded McNair funding

Supportive Measures: A Grounded Theory Analysis Of The Needs And Aspirations Of First-Generation College Students Enrolled In The Federally-Funded Trio Student Support Services (sss) Program At A Community College In Rural Kentucky

For more than forty-nine years (since 1968) the federally-funded TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) programs have served disadvantaged students across the United States of America by providing wrap-around services to further the progress of their enrollment in postsecondary educational opportunities. The SSS program aims to assist students with disabilities, and who identify as low-income and first-generation (LIFG) college students, towards the successful completion of certification in a technical program and an undergraduate level degree from either a two or four-year college or university. This study evaluated the needs and aspirations of [ten] first-generation college students at the point-of-entry of enrollment into the TRIO SSS program as participants of the summer bridge program in 2017 at a community college in rural Kentucky. The summer bridge program provides student participants of the TRIO SSS program a jumpstart on their college experience and serves as an additional boost to students who enrolled in the program during the 2017 spring semester. The primary investigator (PI) employed a grounded theory research methodology to analyze the needs and aspirations of the ten TRIO SSS students at the point-of-entry into the SSS program and how the perspective of the student directly aligns with the objectives of the community college\u27s SSS program grant. There are four major themes which emerged from the analysis of the individual interview sessions and personal statements taken from the student\u27s SSS application at the point-of-entry into the program. The first theme is the focus on self and the specific goals of wanting to accomplish postsecondary enrollment (PSE) and postsecondary degree attainment (PSA). The second theme is the focus on family, with one-fourth of the students articulating the desire to be a role model for present and future generations. The third theme is the enthusiasm of the student and the pride that comes from being a first-generation college student. The final theme is the perspective of the student about their future which extends beyond postsecondary enrollment and postsecondary degree attainment. The implications of the themes and the resulting theory for TRIO SSS program management and federal policy are presented for the benefit of potential modification of program services in the next fifty years. Suggestions for further research are also provided