Educational Talent Search and Upward Bound
These programs help a diverse group of military veterans and low-income high school students pursue higher education.
Hundreds of thousands of students across the country are assisted by
UB, ETS, and GEAR-UP each year.
Mills College hosts two federally-funded TRIO programs--
Upward Bound (established at Mills in 1966)
and Educational Talent Search (established at Mills in 1997).
Together, the programs serve over 800 students in the Oakland Unified School District by providing them with the college counseling, mentoring, and academic support that they cannot get in their schools.
If these TRIO programs are eliminated, students from all neighborhoods and high schools in Oakland will be impacted.
and ideas for wording your messages to Congress, President Bush, and Governor Schwarzenegger
Here's what you can do to help:
~ WRITE TO YOUR REPS. Letters, faxes, and e-mails to members of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatitives are urgent at this time. The President's budget proposal is just that--a proposal. The budget still
has to be passed by Congress, and it will go through many changes over the
next few months before it is finally passed this summer. Let our government officials know that you do not support the President's plan to eliminate Upward Bound and Educational Talent Search. Urge them not to support it, either.
~ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO WRITE, TOO. Please spread the word to your family and friends about this important issue. You may want to actually organize some people you know into letter-writing campaigns. Politicians need to know that TRIO programs don't just change the lives of the people who are directly involved-- they change the communities that they are a part of. Ask for the support of the following people in your life:
*family and friends
*teachers/professors
*school administrators
*other members of clubs/organizations to which you belong
*people at your church, mosque, synagog, temple or other house of worship
*co-workers
~SHOW OFF YOUR TRIO AFFILIATION. If you are a proud Upward Bound or ETS alum, talk about it. Wear your shirts. The Bust administration maintains that some TRIO programs are ineffective. Make sure people in your community know that TRIO works.
~ BE A REGISTERED VOTER. If you are eligible to vote, make sure you are registered! If you live
in California, you can register at
http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/votereg1.html. Out of state residents, check out the "helpful links" section of this site for voter information.
~KNOW THE TRIO PROGRAM IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD. TRIO programs all over the country are mobilizing to fight the President's budget proposal. They may be planning local events to help draw attention to and protest the President's budget. To find a program near you, click the "TRIO Programs Nationwide" link on this page for an alphabetical list by state.
~USE YOUR CONNECTIONS. If you have connections in politics, in the media, or in any other professions that may be helpful in this struggle, let someone at your TRIO program know. Networking can only make us stronger and help us spread the word about the dangers of eliminating TRIO and GEAR-UP.
