A state-funded program made to assist disadvantaged and disabled students is on the hunt for 50 new recipients who meet its requirements. This is due to the exodus of successful transfers from the program at Citrus College to four-year universities.
The STEM TRiO program is funded through Student Support Services and was initiated in 2015. It has recently been approved for five more years. The TRiO program provides opportunities for academic development, assisting students to navigate college requirements and success towards completion in their postsecondary education.
Federal requirements depend on the size and yearly income of the family. Current year low-income levels can be found here. Eligible participants must also be in STEM, nursing or health science courses to be considered while applying.
In 2019, 45 students (38%) that participated in the program transferred to a four-year university. In 2020, 49 students (41%) completed their programs of study at Citrus College and transferred to a university.
The STEM TRiO program serves 120 students annually. Once students become a part of the TRiO program, they remain until they complete their studies at the college.
According to the Citrus home page, the program is designed to help better secure good and improved academic results for minority, less-privileged and disabled students whose parents may not have gone to college and who are majoring in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and allied health fields (nursing, EMT, etc.). Eligibility requirements can be found on the link provided.
“What we found is that students who are in TRiO, who are eligible and participate in TRiO, do better,” Smith said.
Course success rates in fall retention with the 2018 cohort group shows the course success rate for STEM majors that were TRiO eligible was 60% and if they were not eligible, their success rate was 75%.
“Now looking at the same cohort, if they participated in the TRiO program their success rate was 83%, which meant that they were doing better than the students who aren’t eligible and better than eligible students overall,” Smith said.
Last year, Smith and her staff took two different groups of TRiO participants to leadership conferences so that they could gain other leadership qualities and skills and networking opportunities outside of Citrus.
“I like to focus on anything that might be enriching to the students of the program,” Smith said.
They also took them to see “Phantom of the Opera” at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. They were able to not only witness the cultural backgrounds but also the engineering of the set coupled with the bond of working formally with the students.
“When I joined the program I instantly felt well connected with staff/faculty and other students,” TRiO program participant Rebecca Gio said in an email. “Everyone on the staff goes above and beyond the call of duty.”
Gio successfully transferred from the TRiO program at Citrus College to Cal Poly Pomona as a computer science student.
The program was proposed after fall 2010 data showed a significant gap in good academic standing, success rates and GPAs for non-eligible TRiO students compared to TRiO eligible students.
“What we know is that students who are economically disadvantaged and who are first generation have more difficulty in college, and not because they are not smart but because navigating college is hard,” Smith said.
Applications for TRiO can be found on the STEM TRiO page on the Citrus College website and submitted to monicahernandez@citruscollge.edu.
