TRIO Support Services

"We Coach Students to Success: Persistence. Performance. Completion."

Our Vision

TRIO Student Support Services at Normandale Community College aspires to significantly impact the lives of students, providing intentional support, access, and opportunity to students who are low-income, first-generation college students, and/or students with disabilities, resulting in high levels of persistence, performance, and completion; alumni of our program will go on to be leaders in their communities, transforming their own lives and inspiring future generations.

Our Mission

We coach students to success. TRIO Student Support Services at Normandale Community College provides intensive, individualized coaching to students to achieve persistence, performance, and completion, through sound academic guidance, co-curricular educational experiences, and connection to key resources in order to advance opportunities for students who are low-income, students who are first-generation college students, and/or students with disabilities.

Overarching Goal

With students always at the center of our work, our primary goal is student persistence, performance, and completion. Everything we do is in service to this goal. We coach students to success.

Persistence. Performance. Completion. Goals.

• Persistence Goal: 70% of all participants served by Normandale TRIO SSS will persist from one academic year to the beginning of the next academic year or earn an associate's degree or certificate from Normandale Community College and/or transfer to a four-year institution by the fall term of the next academic year.
• Performance Goal: 80% of all enrolled TRIO SSS participants served will meet the performance level required to stay in good academic standing at Normandale Community College. Good academic standing at Normandale is defined as a cumulative earned grade point average of at least 2.0 and an accumulated earned credit rate of at least 67%.
• Completion Goal: 25% of new participants served each year will graduate from Normandale Community College with an associate's degree or certificate within four years.

TRIO Student Support Services is now accepting applications for the 2023-2024 school year.  If you are interested, please complete this application.

• Be sure you have enrolled in at least 6 fall semester credits, and have submitted your FAFSA (financial aid) application to Normandale to improve your chances of being selected for the program.
• PSEO students and continuing students not meeting satisfactory academic progress (2.0 GPA or a completion rate greater than 66.66%) are not eligible to participate.
• Accepted students will be notified later this summer, and be able to begin meeting with their assigned coach at that time.

If you have any questions about the program or application, please do not hesitate to contact the program by phone or email!

Phone: 952-358-9443
Email: triosss@normandale.edu

TRIO SSS is a free U.S. Department of Education program that supports students whose parents did not graduate from a 4-year college, OR who are low-income, OR who have a disability.  TRIO has existed since 1964, and can be found on numerous colleges across Minnesota, and serves over 800,000 students nationwide each year.  Many college students compare TRIO SSS to the support they received in high school from teachers, mentors and counselors, Upward Bound, AVID, and College Possible programs.

TRIO Services 
Students participating in the TRIO SSS program will have an assigned professional student success coach they can meet with throughout their entire college experience from beginning to end related to:
•    Assistance with registration, course selection, and degree planning
•    Assistance planning and applying to transfer to other colleges
•    Financial help, including the FAFSA, financial aid processes, student loan help, and scholarships
•    Workshops, including visits to 4-year colleges and employer visits, and other cultural and social events
•    Assistance with navigating college-level academics and getting connected to helpful resources

TRIO Benefits 
•    Priority registration every semester, so that you can pick your ideal classes/instructors first!
•    Opportunity to earn 1 credit online free (no tuition charged) in a first-year experience course with your coach (NCC 1000 – Paths to College Success)
•    Free social and entertainment activities (sporting events, museums, theatre, outdoor recreation, etc.)
•    85% of new students participating in TRIO Student Support Services nationwide continue to be enrolled, or graduated or transferred, in their 2nd academic year of college.
•    40% of TRIO SSS students graduate with an associate’s degree or transfer to a 4-year college in 4 years of less.
•    When compared with similarly qualified students, TRIO SSS students are more likely to persist in school, earn more credits per year, and earn higher GPAs!