What is EOC
The Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) is the fourth of eight TRIO programs. Established in 1972 with the goal of increasing the number of students who graduated high school and enrolled in college, EOC was designed to assist adults wishing to pursue a college education. Today, EOC works with adults, 19 years old or older, who are interested in attending college or a technical school program. Although the program focuses primarily on adults, it also serves students under the age of 19 who are not being served by a Talent Search or Upward Bound program.
Program Objectives
All EOC services revolve around assisting students in meeting four objectives:
- the completion of high school or a high school equivalency program
- the completion of financial aid applications
- the completion of admissions applications
- becoming successfully enrolled in a program of postsecondary education or in an apprenticeship program
EOC also provides services and resources to improve its participants' financial and economic literacy.
Service Area
EOC is funded to serve 2264 participants in a nine-county area in eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas. This service area includes Haskell, Latimer, LeFlore, Pittsburg, and Sequoyah counties in Oklahoma and Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, and Sebastian counties in Arkansas. EOC has four office locations. Office's are located in Poteau, OK; Sallisaw, OK; Fort Smith, AR; and Van Buren, AR. EOC Advisors also travel throughout the sercice area to assist participants at partnering agencies.
Assistance with Federal Student Aid
Although EOC provides many services and resources, its most popular service is assistance with the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). Completing the FAFSA is a priority for anyone wishing to attend college or technical school and is now a requirement for high school graduation in Oklahoma. The application, although sometimes confusing, determines how much federal student aid a student may qualify for in Pell grants, federal work-study, and/or federal student loans. EOC prides itself on making this process easier and less burdensome for its participants by offering hands-on, personalized assistance.
More About TRIO
TRIO programs were the first college access and retention programs created to address social and cultural barriers to Education in the United States. TRIO began as part of Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty when the Educational/Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 established the Upward Bound program. In 1965, the Higher Education Act created Talent Search, the second outreach program. Then, in 1968, Special Services for Disadvantaged Students was created. This program would later be renamed Student Support Services (SSS). Together, this series of three educational opportunity programs shared a goal of creating access to higher education for low-income students and became known as “TRIO”.
Through the years, TRIO has expanded from its original three programs to eight programs. This expansion allowed for more services that benefit a wider range of students needing assistance. In 1972, the Educational Opportunity Center became the fourth TRIO program and Veterans Upward Bound was created to meet the academic needs of Veterans returning from Vietnam. The Training Program for Federal TRIO Programs Staff was authorized in 1976. In 1986, the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program was established. Finally, in 1990, the Department of Education created its eighth federal TRIO program, Upward Bound Math/Science.
Although each TRIO program has its own unique set of goals and objectives, they all focus their efforts on supporting low-income, first-generation students, and/or students with disabilities. Across all programs, students from sixth grade through college graduation are served across the nation. TRIO programs provide academic tutoring, personal counseling, mentoring, financial aid assistance and information, and other resources necessary for educational access. TRIO programs also provide relevant training for program directors and staff.