UW Student Success TRIO Program Gets Five-Year Federal Grant

A University of Wyoming program that helps students adjust to college life and prepare for careers after graduation will be funded by a federal grant for the next five years.

The university’s Student Success Services program was awarded a five-year TRIO grant from the U.S. Department of Education to the tune of $374,167 annually.

“SEO is proud of the holistic support SSS provides to 230 first-generation, income-eligible students and students with disabilities at UW each year and looks forward to contributing to UW’s retention efforts going forward,” says Michael Wade, associate director of UW Department of Student Educational Opportunity.

“Obtaining continued funding to support the SSS project at UW for another five years speaks to the ongoing effectiveness of SSS in assisting participants to persist and graduate from UW," says Wade.

Students who take advantage of SSS receive individual advising services aimed at supporting academic, career, and personal success at UW.  The stated goal of the program is to increase the “persistence, good academic standing and graduation rates of its participants.”

The most recent SSS data says that participants are 15 percent more likely to complete their first year of college in good academic standing, while 18 percent are more likely to persist at all levels of college and 21 percent are more likely to graduate within six years than eligible students who do not seek access to services.

Federal TRIO programs are outreach services designed to identify and benefit students from disadvantaged backgrounds.  The programs are geared toward low-income individuals, first-generation college students, and individuals with disabilities in order to assist their academic progress from middle school through post-baccalaureate degree programs.