Current practices and future directions are examined for the federal student support service programs known as TRIO (Talent Search, Upward Bound, Special Services for Disadvantaged Students, and Educational Opportunity Centers) and the Educational Information Centers program. The TRIO programs identify low income and educationally disadvantaged students, motivate and counsel them in their pursuit of secondary educational alternatives, and provide guidance, tutorial, and other services following college entry. Educational Information Centers have a broader mandate to serve all students who need information, counseling, and referral services. It is felt that these programs are a crucial element of national policy to equalize opportunity, and have been neglected. Trends in college enrollment and populations, in student aid availability, and in adult learning underline the growing importance of these programs. This report assesses issues and options in these Title IV programs: authorization level for the various programs; possible overlap and duplication among the programs; possible need to specify stronger integration or coordination among these or other programs for the disadvantaged; and groups to be served. Recommendations related to these issues are made for each program. Appended are two tables: (1) total program authorization and appropriations from 1965 through 1979; and (2) a history of TRIO allocation levels by program from 1966 through 1979. (MSE)