Trump zeros out TRIO and GEAR UP college access programs

Trump's FY2026 budget proposed eliminating $1.6 billion in TRIO and GEAR UP college access programs as part of a 15.3% ($12 billion) cut to the Education Department, according to Inside Higher Ed.

TRIO programs served 880,000 students nationwide with $1.191 billion in FY2024. GEAR UP served 570,000 students across 3,000 secondary schools with $388 million, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Two-thirds of TRIO participants have family incomes at or below 150% of the poverty level, and neither parent graduated from college. Demographics: 37% White, 35% Black, 19% Hispanic, 4% Native American, 4% Asian.

A 2015 Education Department evaluation found TRIO's Student Support Services participants were 78% more likely to complete an associate degree or transfer to a four-year college, and 23% more likely to graduate with a bachelor's degree.

In Sept. 2025, the Education Department froze hundreds of millions in TRIO grants, putting 650,000 college students and high school seniors at risk of losing academic advising mid-semester.

The Senate Appropriations Committee voted 26-3 to sustain TRIO funding at $1.2 billion for FY2026, rejecting Trump's elimination proposal with bipartisan support led by Republican co-chair Susan Collins (R-ME).

Among children of the highest-income families, 92% attended college, compared with 49% of children from the lowest-income families, according to a 2020 Brookings Institution report.