December 9, 2009

Dear Colleague:

Last night, Members of the Senate and House Committees on Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education (LHHS) reported out its conferenced bill (which provides funding for all Department of Education programs, including TRIO). Unfortunately, TRIO received only a $5 million increase for FY 2010 (for a total of $853 million). The nominal increase provided for FY 2010 places an increased pressure on the upcoming Student Support Services competition -- one of the largest and most competitive competitions in TRIO.

Under the same bill, GEAR UP received a $10 million increase for FY 2010 (for a total of $323 million).    

The bill is expected to pass the House and Senate within days and cannot be amended under the rules of Congress.    



Sincerely,



Arnold Mitchem