Sandburg Celebrating 50th Anniversary of TRIO SSS on Sept. 5
Aaron Frey
Wednesday, August 22, 2018 10:05 AM
Campus News
Galesburg, IL
In honor of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of TRIO Student Support Services, Carl Sandburg College’s TRIO SSS program will host an open house-style “birthday celebration” from 10 a.m.-noon Sept. 5 in the Student Center on the College’s Main Campus in Galesburg, 2400 Tom L. Wilson Blvd.
The event will highlight the program’s history, services and student accomplishments. A brief ceremony will follow from 12:15-12:45 p.m. to honor select Sandburg TRIO SSS alumni and current high-achieving TRIO SSS students.
A federally funded grant program available through the U.S. Department of Education, TRIO serves first-generation, income-eligible students who intend to graduate with an associate degree and transfer to a four-year college or university to earn a bachelor’s degree. TRIO SSS was established under the 1968 reauthorization of the Higher Education Act and was part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s goal of seeing that “no American talent is wasted.”
Sandburg first hosted a TRIO SSS program in 1997 and has since helped hundreds of students work toward their goal of becoming a college graduate. Sandburg’s program, which has a funding level of $236,910 for the 2018-19 academic year, offers a wide variety of services to participants, including academic advising; priority class registration; transfer assistance; financial aid and scholarship advising; textbook and equipment lending; and leadership opportunities. Ninety percent of students in Sandburg’s TRIO SSS program meet their educational goals, and 91 percent have a good academic standing.
TRIO SSS students around the country have similar success. Research shows that first-generation, income eligible students who participate in a TRIO SSS program are six times more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree than peers who received federal financial aid but no TRIO SSS services.
For questions or more information, contact Autumn Scott, director of TRIO SSS, at 309.341.5462 or anscott@sandburg.edu.