Colorado State University Pueblo Celebrates National TRIO Day With Service Project
Release Date: February 23, 2021
Colorado State University Pueblo joins the National TRIO Day celebration on Feb. 26, 2021. CSU Pueblo offers five federally-funded programs to provide college access and success opportunities to adults and high school students, providing assistance to first-generation, active military and students with disabilities. This year’s celebration has a focus on service and giving back to the Pueblo community.
“We’re excited to celebrate TRIO day this year and elevate the success of all of the programs we offer here at CSU Pueblo,” said Gina Lopez Ferguson, executive director of TRIO programs at CSU Pueblo. “The success of our students is our number one priority and it’s always important to take time to celebrate the strength of our programs that support them.”
National TRIO Day began in 1986, declared by congressional resolution (H. Con. Res. 278) to celebrate the Federal TRIO program successes across the country. Since 1986, the fourth Saturday of February has remained the celebratory day of National TRIO Day.
CSU Pueblo TRIO programs reached out to each of the programs and the CSU Pueblo campus community to celebrate with a focus on service by partnering with Pueblo’s Senior Resource Development Agency (SRDA) Meals on Wheels Program.The CSU Pueblo TRIO office will collect greeting cards, letters and activity puzzles like Sudoku, crosswords and coloring books for the seniors served at SRDA.These items will then be included with the Meals on Wheels delivery to support seniors suffering from loneliness due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The TRIO programs office has a collection box on the third floor of the Library on CSU Pueblo’s campus, LARC 357.
Director of Student Support Services, Brenda Trujillo-Aranda helped organize this service project. “Recently we read a story about seniors experiencing an increase in isolation and loneliness as a result of the pandemic,” said Trujillo-Aranda. “We decided this was a great way to partner with SRDA Meals on Wheels Program and do something to support our community.We are very appreciative of the support our TRIO programs receive from the campus community and we hope that more will join us to support this service project for our TRIO celebration this year.”
TRIO currently serves more than 800,000 students across the nation from middle school through post-graduate study. Many of the support services vary for each of the programs, based on the needs of the students and the population served in each program. TRIO students primarily are from families that earn less than $38,000 a year and/or in which neither parent have earned a college degree.
This year, CSU Pueblo programs will celebrate all week long by spotlighting each of the five programs offered on campus, through social media: the Educational Opportunity Center, Student Support Services, Educational Talent Search, Upward Bound and Veterans Upward Bound.
The Educational Opportunity Center assists adults and high school students with college admissions and in obtaining financial assistance for education. Some of the services included at the Educational Opportunity Center include obtaining college application fee waivers, acquiring student loan default rehabilitation, assistance with enrolling in GED programs and transferring from a two-year to a four-year college.
Student Support Services provides academic counseling, tutoring and other services for low-income students, first-generation students and students with disabilities. This program is specific to CSU Pueblo students and offers assistance with academic success workshops, academic counseling and graduation action planning, tutoring, graduate school advising and monitoring academic progress.
Educational Talent Search is a program for middle and high school students to develop aspiration for college, explore careers and potential college majors and assist them in applying for college admissions and financial aid. Although Educational Talent Search is supported by CSU Pueblo, this program assists students in Pueblo regardless of where they choose to attend college. This program assists 500 middle and high school students annually across the city of Pueblo.
Upward Bound provides high school students the academic, social and cultural support needed for graduation, college admission and a successful future. This program focuses on students navigating high school with resources for state assessments, coursework tutoring to stay on track and assists students with achieving graduation from high school.
Veterans Upward Bound provides assistance to veterans transitioning into higher education through academic skills refresher training and advising. Some resources include assistance for veterans to complete a high school equivalency program to gain college admission, career counseling, academic and financial aid advising and assistance with application to the college or university of their choice, which does not have to include CSU Pueblo.
For more information about CSU Pueblo’s TRIO programs, please visit www.csupueblo.edu/trio/contact-us for specific contacts for each of the five programs offered at CSU Pueblo.
