With the Trump administration defunding educational institutions who continue their Diversity Equity & Inclusion programs, could ECC’s TRIO be in limbo?

The cancellation of TRIO programs across the nations has threatened the future of students, threatens their access to college, as well as the years of  progress made to solidify long term economic success.

According to a Council for Opportunity in Education (COE) October press release, the loss of 120 TRIO programs due to Trump’s cancellation or rejection of grants, can lead to fewer graduates, work force shortages in strained fields such as education and healthcare. 

There is an active lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education by the COE as the COE can be cited in the brief stating “the national importance of TRIO programs in sustaining an educated workforce and advancing economic growth.”

“For now, there has been no disruption to ECC’s TRIO services or programming,” according to an ECC statement. “Programs are funded for the 2025-2026 academic year.” 

In 2020, TRIO was awarded two grants for a total of $3.8 million grants from the U.S .Department of Education, according to a statement on ECC’s website. That statement also indicated that both grants were for five years.  

Additionally the statement noted that the federal agency has funded ECC’s Student Support Service (SSS) program for over 35 years, and its SSS/English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) program for over 10 years.

“The funding is a five-year grant cycle,” said Michelle Ramirez, Director of TRIO’s Student Support Services program.

 The 2024-2025 grant cycle funded by the US Department of Education, ended May as it was its last year cycle. 

It is unclear if this federal funding will be re-awarded. 

“We applied for the renewal of the grants, both grants but were shy a couple points, however SSS received their funding,” said Ramirez.

“We did not receive the funding (ESL program) so we finished out the five years,” Ramirez said referring to the five-year cycle that ended in May.

“Back in May, we had Board [of Trustees] approval and the support of the [ECC] president to assist the TRIO ESL program for the academic year, so we were really excited about that,” Ramirez said. 

TRIO is a nationwide program that caters to under-represented students and is specifically designed to provide academic, financial, and personal support to students facing unique challenges in higher education. 

 “TRIO offers individualized support and fosters an inclusive environment to help students reach their full potential,”  said Michelle Ramirez, Director of TRIO’s Student Support Services program.

“ESL grants services [to] 144 students,” Ramirez said. “SSS supports 362 students.”

According to the U.S. Department of Education, in January 2025, President Trump issued multiple executive orders, including “ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing” as well as “ending Illegal discrimination and restoring merit-based opportunity,” to terminate DEI mandates, policies, and programs across the federal government and for federal contractors and grantees.

TRIO services are provided for students no matter the program they are enrolled in. These support services include workshops on organization, how to fill out Free Application for Federal Student Aid, college campus visits, scholarship assistance, and ESL programs.

To be eligible for TRIO, students must be a U.S. citizen or a  permanent resident. Additionally, students must be a first generation college student, have limited income or a documented physical or learning disability.

“I’m a first generation graduate,” Ramirez said. “I wish there were programs like these around when I was going to school.”