Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs

(GEAR UP)

Department of Education

Proposed Cut

$388M

% Reduction

100.0%

Action Type

elimination

Who Is Served

560,000 middle/high school students in low-income communities

Summary

GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) is a federal grant program that helps low-income middle and high school students prepare academically and financially for college through mentoring, tutoring, and college-planning support. The FY2027 budget proposes eliminating the program entirely, cutting all $388 million in funding, a 100% reduction, with the administration arguing that college-readiness efforts should be handled by states and local communities instead.

Who Is Affected

About 560,000 middle and high school students from low-income families are served by GEAR UP, through grants that reach roughly 2,954 secondary schools and school districts across the country. The program also funds partnerships between school districts, colleges, and community organizations, including work by mentors, tutors, and college-access counselors who guide students through a multi-year "cohort model" starting as early as sixth or seventh grade.

What this cut would actually mean

If eliminated, thousands of local GEAR UP partnerships would lose their only source of federal funding for college-readiness services, likely forcing many school districts and colleges to end tutoring, mentoring, financial-aid counseling, and college-visit programs for low-income students. Because GEAR UP grants are already highly competitive—less than 1 in 5 applicants currently receive funding—ending the program would leave hundreds of thousands of students without the structured, multi-year support shown to raise college enrollment among first-generation and low-income youth, with no guaranteed state or local replacement in most areas.

Why this hits Alabama harder

GEAR UP is aimed at low-income middle and high schoolers, and Alabama has an unusually high share of children in that group. Alabama's child poverty rate was about 20% in 2024, well above the national rate of roughly 13-14%, and Alabama is the nation's seventh-poorest state overall. Because GEAR UP grants (including at UAB, a major Alabama site) specifically target students in high-poverty schools, eliminating the program would strip away a bigger slice of college-prep support for Alabama kids than for the country as a whole.

What is the poverty rate in Alabama? | USAFacts — Reports Alabama's 2024 child poverty rate at 20.2%, showing a steep decline from 27.7% in 2014 but still elevated compared to national figures.
Barriers to Prosperity Data Sheet 2024 - Alabama Possible — States Alabama is the nation's seventh poorest state, with about 798,000 residents, including 237,000 children, living below the poverty line.
Issue Brief: U.S. Child Poverty in 2024 - First Focus on Children — Reports the 2024 national child poverty rate at 13.4%, providing a baseline to compare against Alabama's higher rate.
GEAR UP Program Abstracts - U.S. Department of Education — Describes an Alabama GEAR UP grant (University of Alabama at Birmingham) in which most served students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, showing the program's direct focus on low-income Alabama students.

Sources

A Summary of the U.S. Department of Education's FY 2027 Budget Request — Law firm summary confirming GEAR UP is among the discretionary higher-education programs eliminated in the FY2027 Department of Education budget request.
Severe Cuts to TRIO and GEAR UP Programs Hamper Efforts to Offer Fair College Access and Success — The Institute for College Access & Success reports that the proposed elimination would cut support to over 560,000 students served through GEAR UP.
Investing in GEAR UP To Advance College and Career Readiness: Pathways to Success — Center for American Progress describes GEAR UP's cohort model and reports the program serves roughly 570,000 students across 2,954 secondary schools nationwide.
FY27 President's Budget Request Signals Major Shifts in Higher Education — Law firm analysis confirming the FY2027 budget proposes eliminating $388 million in GEAR UP funding.
About GEAR UP — National Council for Community and Education Partnerships — Notes that GEAR UP funding is highly competitive, with fewer than 1 in 5 applicants currently receiving grants due to demand exceeding available funding.