Community College Students and Grant Aid: Bringing Equity to the Provision of Grant Aid by States and Institutions

Abstract

In order to reverse the troubling low graduation rates at our nation’s community colleges, low-income students must stop being financially penalized for attending these institutions. As this brief outlines, low-income students who attend community college receive less state and institutional grant aid, on average, than their counterparts at four-year public universities. Community College Students and Grant Aid recommends that states equalize their need-based grant allocation and that community colleges prioritize need-based institutional aid. The brief also highlights the need to strengthen community colleges’ fundraising capabilities, for their limited financial resources limit their ability to award institutional grants.