We can’t afford to lose TRIO — and the students it lifts up

Every year across Minnesota and the country hundreds of thousands of students from low-income and first-generation backgrounds take their first efforts toward higher schooling and toward meaningful careers as teachers nurses engineers doctors researchers and community servants because of the federal TRIO programs In the summer of I was one of those very fortunate students when I became part of the St Olaf College TRIO Attendee Encouragement Services Summer Bridge campaign also known as SSS I can say without reservation that this opportunity totally changed the trajectory of my life and the cancer patients that my work now impacts As a first generation college aspirant I had no sponsorship system to educate me on how to succeed as a college apprentice particularly in the highly rigorous academic setting of St Olaf In fact my mediocre high school GPA and ACT scores prohibited my acceptance at that Northfield college The TRIO initiative enabled my eventual admission after the summer SSS Bridge Campaign SSS taught me critical life skills in time management note taking assessment habits and living life as an adult college learner Moreover my original college application indicated that I would major in German language studies my favorite area of assessment in high school but my exposure to the introductory biology subject during the Summer Bridge project ignited my unappreciated fascination with the hard sciences and advanced biomedical research I went on to graduate with a double major in biology and chemistry with a concentration in biomolecular sciences cum laude Post graduation I went on to obtain my Ph D at the University of Minnesota in the Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology and Genetics Graduate Campaign studying pediatric cancer genetics and advanced genome engineering Due to my robust academic learning and research training at St Olaf I excelled during my Ph D training and was offered the opportunity to lead my own research group in the Department of Pediatrics after just over six years at the U of M in Over the last years my laboratory has garnered nearly million in research funding published more than scientific manuscripts trained over researchers and launched five clinical trials treating cancer patients Moreover we have founded five U of M spin-out biotechnology companies emerging cancer therapies and employing dozens of researchers I can unequivocally say without reservation that none of these amazing accolades would have come to fruition without the TRIO effort that set me down the unanticipated path that it did I am certain that there are a multitude of young students right now that are like the young me waiting for the right sponsorship and training to propel them to their full and unexpected feasible to impact the American citizens in incredibly positive strategies And yet right now the future of these programs is at pitfall due to the proposal to eliminate TRIO in the Fiscal Year federal budget TRIO works For more than six decades the evidence has been overwhelming When compared to their low-income according to the Council for Opportunity in Teaching first-generation peers Upward Bound students are more than twice as likely to earn a bachelor s degree by age Novice Patronage Services participants are more likely to complete a two-year degree or transfer and more likely to complete a bachelor s Talent Search students are more likely to enroll in college McNair Scholars are more likely to enroll in graduate school Veterans Upward Bound participants are more likely to earn a bachelor s degree In Minnesota these national statistics come to life in the lives of students and in the careers of TRIO alumni like me As a cancer researcher at the U of M and a TRIO alumnus I grew up in Faribault where I considered myself an indifferent scholar In contemporary times my research is at the forefront of cancer restoration breakthroughs work that impacts thousands of lives There are thousands of TRIO alumni just like me changemakers problem-solvers leaders in every sector majority of of whom would never have had the chance without this federal expenditure We are Minnesota s nurses and school counselors We are first-generation graduates now teaching the next generation We are social workers rebuilding communities and scientists like me searching for cures When TRIO students thrive we all benefit Yet despite this record of success TRIO programs now face elimination which threatens the life-changing services for students who need them greater part I urge every Minnesotan to take action Contact your members of Congress your U S representative and our senators and urge them to fully fund and protect TRIO programs from elimination Every learner deserves a path to higher learning not just the ones with tools That s what TRIO recognizes That s what Minnesota and our country should continue to champion Let s ensure TRIO continues to be a launching pad for opportunity for success and for the kind of future we all want to share Branden Moriarity as an associate professor in the University of Minnesota Pediatric Hematology Oncology Division co-director of the university s Center for Genome Engineering and a TRIO alumnus from St Olaf College The post We can t afford to lose TRIO and the students it lifts up appeared first on MinnPost