[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 21 (Wednesday, March 1, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E214]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONGRESSMAN MICHAEL N. CASTLE STATEMENT IN RECOGNITION OF NATIONAL TRIO 
                                  DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL N. CASTLE

                              of delaware

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 1, 2000

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to bring to my colleagues' attention 
National TRIO Day, celebrated on the last Saturday of February.
  The federal TRIO programs, which include Talent Search, Upward Bound, 
Student Support Services, Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate 
Achievement, Educational Opportunity Centers, Staff Development 
programs, and GEAR UP, were established to compliment student aid 
programs and help students overcome class, social and cultural barriers 
to higher education.
  As mandated by Congress, two-thirds of the students served must come 
from families with low incomes where neither parent graduated from 
college. Today, 2,000 colleges, universities and community agencies 
sponsor TRIO programs, and more than 780,000 students between the ages 
of 11 and 27 benefit from these services.
  In my state of Delaware, there are 15 TRIO programs, including those 
at Delaware State University, the University of Delaware, and Delaware 
Technical & Community College. TRIO programs at these schools serve 
nearly 3,000 Delawareans, and studies show that these students will be 
more likely to remain in college and earn an undergraduate degree than 
students from similar backgrounds who did not participate in TRIO.
  One of the beneficiaries of the Delaware TRIO programs is Jean-Marie 
Nixon. Ms. Nixon worked in hospitality management until a major 
industrial accident prevented her from returning to her old job. Ms. 
Nixon enrolled in classes at Delaware Technical & Community College 
and, with the help of the TRIO program, she graduated from her program 
with honors and is now an Instructional Tutor.
  Access and retention services are absolutely essential to help ensure 
equal educational opportunity for students like Ms. Nixon. I would like 
to encourage my colleagues to visit the TRIO programs in their 
districts and learn for themselves how valuable these programs are to 
our nation.

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