Can TRIO & GEAR UP continue to coexist?
When Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) was signed into public law by President Bill Clinton in 1998, many in the postsecondary and pre-college communities applauded. The initiative added what they considered a critical missing piece to the federal government’s array of efforts to extend college opportunity to low-income students — the middle school piece. Moreover, GEAR UP provided secondary school systems with a financial incentive to ensure that every child was exposed to a pre-college curriculum.