June 26, 2005
ASPIRE State Presidents,
Please forward this message to all TRIO Personnel in your state.
On June 9 we received notice that the House Labor/HHS/Education Subcommittee voted to restore funding to all TRIO Programs. The measure rejects proposed cuts to TRIO programs, restoring them to last year's level of $837 million, and rejects the proposed termination of the GEAR UP Program. First, I want to sincerely thank all of you for endless hours of work thus far. This was a great accomplishment, but only the beginning of a long fight. There are many steps in the appropriations process, so we must continue our efforts until TRIO funding for all programs is secured.. It is expected that the Senate will take action in July. We are optimistic that the Senate will agree to full restoration for TRIO Programs. The Senate is also preparing to move on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act which affects prior experience points. We must take nothing for granted, so please continue your work and watch for Action Alerts throughout the summer!
As you well know, the Council has been instrumental in this vote to restore funding for all TRIO Programs. Please do whatever you can to continue to support their efforts with institutional memberships, Equality subscriptions and personal contributions. I would like to see each TRIO Program 'pass the hat'; this would allow many small personal contributions to become a strong statement of support for COE.
Finally, I want to thank our ASPIRE LEADERSHIP, Amy, Curtis, Julie, RuthAnne, Steve, and the ASPIRE State Presidents for their constant efforts in our fight to restore TRIO funding!
Take care,
Cheryl Kingsbury
Governmental Relations Chair
