Jason Ramirez Yohe knew from a young age that he wanted to go to college, but he didn’t know how to get there.

His family, originally from El Salvador, couldn’t talk him through the application process or help him fill out financial-aid forms from his home in Beltsville. Then he discovered Upward Bound, a program that helps low-income and first-generation students get to college.

“I would not be at the University of Maryland right now if it wasn’t for that program,” Yohe said. “It was life-changing.”

But now the federally funded program that he used to get to the state’s flagship College Park campus is at risk of disappearing. The Trump administration has proposed cutting all funding to TRIO, which is made up of eight programs including Upward Bound, in its 2026 proposed budget.

As the president and Congress race toward a Sept. 30 budget deadline before a possible government shutdown, some Republicans, including Maine Sen. Susan Collins and West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, have released statements in support of TRIO, leaving its future unclear.

The Trump administration in its proposal called TRIO a “relic of the past,” adding “access to college is not the obstacle it was for students of limited means.” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said during a congressional hearing in May that there was less of a need for TRIO, adding that it should be up to “local communities,” rather than colleges, to decide how to support high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The programs, some of which date back to 1965, cost roughly $1.2 billion each year and serve about 870,000 students nationwide. Last year, more than 12,500 students in the state of Maryland were served by TRIO programs.

Holly Clark, the director of TRIO student support services at Frostburg State University, said the looming cuts would “hurt current and future students.” It would also hurt the university itself, Clark warned.

TRIO provides colleges funding for additional on-campus tutoring to help students. If it is eliminated, according to Clark, the university won’t be able to keep tutoring students at the same rate.

TRIO funding also provides financial aid guidance to students. Without that, Clark warned that “many students won’t have the option to attend school or continue school because they won’t be able to afford it.”

Data at the university shows that low-income and first-generation students who are served by TRIO programming are much more likely to stay in school and graduate, Clark said.

“There is a return on investment, because these students graduate and go on to have better jobs, pay more in taxes and contribute to the economy,” she said.

Michael Hunt, the director for University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s McNair Scholars program, which serves under-represented students under the TRIO umbrella, said the programs help fill the “opportunity gap” that many low-income students face.

“There’s not an achievement gap here — there’s an opportunity gap,” he said. “It provides the opportunity for students, but also for us as institutions to think about the systemic barriers in place that hinder those students from excelling.”

In 2017, the first Trump administration tried to cut a few TRIO initiatives, including the McNair Scholars program, according to Hunt. Now, however, things have changed.

“Back then we had national support and advocacy, and I knew Congress had our back,” he said. “I’m not going to lie to you, I’m worried this time around, because I don’t trust this Congress.”

Jarrell Slade, the acting executive director of pre-college programs at the University of Maryland, College Park, said he is unsure what the impact will be if TRIO is shut down.

“If we’re not longer here, who is providing the important information and guidance?” he questioned. “Who is providing that open door, that opportunity for our students to step through and access the world that is around them?”

Slade said he was worried that the Trump administration thinks the program promotes “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives only. But that’s not the case, he said.

According to the Council for Opportunity in Education, the majority of TRIO recipients, 34%, are white. Another 32% are Black and 23% are Hispanic, with 5% Asian and 3% Native American.

“My heart is sinking just thinking about these programs being cut,” Slade said.

About the Education Hub

This reporting is part of The Banner’s Education Hub, community-funded journalism that provides parents with resources they need to make decisions about how their children learn. Read more.