at a better life. That's why I loved working in the program and did so for eight years.
In late January 2005 the Chronicle of Higher Education reported that the Bush administration was proposing to cut Upward Bound and its middle-school counterpart, Talent Search, from the fiscal year 2006 budget. True to the Chronicle's account, on Feb. 7 the U.S Department of Education (DOE) posted its proposed budget online. Its website, www.ed.gov, includes a section entitled "Programs for Elimination." The DOE does not mince words regarding its decision. The language reads, "The 2006 request continues the practice of the Bush Administration of proposing to eliminate or consolidate funding for programs that have achieved their original purpose, that duplicate other programs, that may be carried out with flexible State formula grant funds, or that involve activities that are better or more appropriately supported through State, local, or private resources." The website lists 48 "programs for elimination." Upward Bound and Talent Search are among those proposed to be laid to rest, for a federal savings of $312.6 and $144.9 million, respectively.
Upward Bound, Talent Search, and Student Support Services are referred to as federal TRIO programs. Upward Bound started under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 as part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty. The other two programs soon followed in 1965 and 1968. All three of the TRIO programs were developed to help low-income, first-generation college students get through high school and into college. According to the DOE's own reports, in 2001, Upward Bound served more than 68,000 students, 45 percent of whom were African American, 25 percent of whom were white, 19 percent of whom were Latino, and 79 percent of whom were considered to be from low-income households. In the 10 years from 1993 to 2003, the DOE estimates that Upward Bound served an average of 50,000 students each year.
In my heart of hearts I am absolutely sure that both Upward Bound programs I worked for were effective. At Upward Bound we provided individual tutoring, personal counseling, technology training, literacy development, SAT preparation, mentoring, and other intangible assistance to our kids and their communities. The director of an Upward Bound program I used to work for had been a participant in the very same Upward Bound program she was directing. We helped kids go to college, plain and simple.
The irony of potentially cutting Upward Bound and Talent Search programs lies in the rhetoric of the Bush administration itself, which claims that it wants to close achievement gaps and help poor, working-class students of color gain increased access to education. Even the DOE budget press release headline reads, "President's FY 2006 Budget Focuses Resources on Students Who Need Them the Most." Upward Bound and Talent Search are two programs that target the exact students that Bush and the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act supposedly want to help. Cutting them would mean focusing resources away from those who need them most.
Upward Bound and Talent Search are only some of the good programs the Bush administration has placed on the chopping block. The DOE proposes cutting the following programs (all dollars are in millions):
Alcohol Abuse Reduction programs in high schools: $32.7
Even Start programs that support "family literacy" and early childhood education in low- income communities: $225.1
Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEARUP) that help low-income elementary and secondary school students prepare for college: $306.5
National Writing Project, which supports K-16 teacher training in effective writing and literacy practices: $20.3
Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities State Grants: $437.4
School Dropout Prevention: $4.9
Smaller Learning Communities, programs that support the breaking up of large, comprehensive high schools into smaller school-within-a-school organization: $94.5
State Grants for Incarcerated Youth Offenders: $21.8
Literacy Programs for Prisoners: $5.0
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