On Feb. 24, 1986, a congressional resolution (H. Con. Res. 278) declared that Saturday, Feb. 28, 1986, should be designated as “National TRIO Day” to commemorate the annual achievements of the federal TRIO programs in communities across the country.

TRIO programs provide academic tutoring, personal counseling, mentoring, financial guidance and other supports necessary for educational access and retention. Over a million first-generation and limited-income students as well as students with disabilities receive college access and retention services each year through the support of TRIO programs across the nation.

CSU has a rich history of TRIO programs that support students with disabilities and first-generation, limited-income and racially minoritized Rams. The first TRIO program on campus was Upward Bound in 1977. Since then, the university has benefited from the addition of many other TRIO programs (including Student Support Services, McNair Scholars, Educational Opportunity Center and Educational Talent Search), as well as the creation of institutionally rooted departments and practices that have often been inspired by the mission and vision of TRIO.

To learn more about TRIO programs at CSU or to become more involved with access and student success work, information and opportunities are available at the Access Center or the Academic Advancement Center.

The CSU TRIO community will be celebrating national TRIO Day on Thursday, Feb. 23, with the following activities and programming throughout the day:

8-10 a.m.: TRIO alumni gallery and refreshments at the Academic Advancement Center (Gibbons Hall)
1-3 p.m.: Community Service projects benefiting the Fort Collins community. Those interested in participating can email sean.jaster@colostate.edu.
4-6 p.m.: Networking event with TRIO alumni, participants and staff hosted at the Office of Inclusive Excellence.

Anyone interested in participating in TRIO Day programming, can contact Sean Jaster at sean.jaster@colostate.edu for more information.