Yes.
The Trump administration’s proposed 2026 budget would cut more than $1 billion in federal funding for programs that help first-generation college students — potentially affecting more than 1,300 students at Arizona’s public universities.
Among the targeted initiatives is TRIO, which helps first-generation and low-income students stay on track for college through grants, academic and career advising, tutoring and financial literacy education. The proposed budget includes no funding for TRIO programs such as Student Support Services or Veterans Upward Bound. It also eliminates funding for GEAR UP, which serves middle and high school students aspiring to become the first in their families to attend college.
Currently, federal TRIO funding supports 820 students at Arizona State University and an additional 491 at the University of Arizona. The administration has already canceled TRIO’s Upward Bound program at Pima Community College, which previously served nearly 1,500 high school students preparing for college.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs, or quick-response fact checks, about trending claims relating to Arizona.
Sources
- Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Summary, U.S. Department of Education
- The TRIO Impact, University of Arizona
- What does TRIO stand for? Southeastern Illinois College
- Federal funding pulled from Upward Bound program offered by PCC, KOLD News 13
- 56% Of All Undergraduates Are First-Generation College Students, Forbes
- TRIO Support Services, Arizona State University
- TRIO programs set high schoolers and Sun Devils up for success, Arizona State University
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The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting is partnering with Gigafact to produce timely fact briefs, or quick-response fact checks, about trending claims relating to Arizona.
