We need to make higher education more affordable if we are to repair some of the damage the pandemic has wreaked on college entry and graduation. While canceling existing student loan debt is an important step, it is not enough. College students shouldn’t be forced to shoulder heavy financial burdens in the first place.
Therefore Congress should double Pell Grant in 2021. President BidenJoe BidenPoll: Biden approval for coronavirus drops by 2 percentage points Overnight Defense: Top US commander in Afghanistan leaves | USA sends delegation to Haiti after troops have been requested | Senate Demen Propose 0.3B for Pentagon in Capitol Security Bill Protests escalate tensions between US and Cuba MORE endorsed this proposal during its campaign last year, but the current federal plan only calls for an annual increase of $ 400. It’s a start, but it’s not enough. By increasing the maximum Pell Grant award to over $ 12,000, you will double the current amount Congress can hit the college’s affordability crisis and help contain the long-term effects of the pandemic on millions of Americans.
We already know that a college degree is a proven driver of economic well-being and social mobility. Unfortunately, those who can benefit most from college degrees – low-income students who are disproportionately black and Latinos – have also borne the greatest burden of the pandemic. While the enrollment rates at universities fell across the board in autumn 2020, Enrollments for low-income high school graduates decreased 10.7 percent, compared to just 4.6 percent of high-income secondary school graduates.
At KIPP Public Schools, our college enrollment fell 16 percent year-over-year in 2020 – the largest drop we’ve ever had in our nearly 30-year history. Many students have told us that they need to stay home and work to support family members who have lost their income. Others said they expected to work on or off campus to pay for college, and when those jobs dried up, their chances of being able to afford tuition disappeared too. Affordability is always the issue that keeps these students away from college.
For many of our students, the bipartisan Pell Grant program is an important part of their college budgeting. Established in 1972, this needs-based federal aid program provides vital college funding to approximately seven million students each year, or about a third of all college students in America. In 1975-76 the maximum Pell price was covered more than three quarters the average cost of attendance at a four-year public university, including tuition, fees, and the cost of living.
But with college costs rising, the Pell Grant has not kept pace. As of this academic year, the maximum Pell price is $ 6,345 – less than a third of what it costs to attend a typical four year school. The last time Congress made a significant investment in the Pell Grant program was over a decade ago, as part of the 2009-10 stimulus package. Meanwhile, the National College Achievement Network (NCAN) Reports that as of 2019, only 25 percent of public four-year institutions and less than half of public two-year institutions are affordable to the average Pell scholar.
If the maximum Pell Grant award were doubled to over $ 12,000 per year, more than 80 percent of the two- and four-year colleges in the United States will become affordable for these students. Research shows that this increase would be more effective at promoting affordability and equity than more general proposals – like free public tuition – that ignore family income. Most Pell recipients have a family income of less than $ 30,000 per year; this would not only aid the economic recovery of these families, but also reduce racial and economic inequalities in college enrollment and graduation.
We know that a student’s degree program has a huge impact on whether and when they graduate. Found the Pew Center that while more and more low-income students are entering college, the majority of them enroll in the most under-selective institutions in the country that may not be best equipped to support them through and through graduation day. By doubling the Pell Grants, Congress will be able to offer these students a wider variety of educational options, including more selective institutions with higher graduation rates, and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that are often less able to offer generous funding because of help historical funding disadvantages.
Of course, any investment in Pell Grants must be accompanied by accountability and transparency measures for the institutions. The federal government needs to address rapidly rising college costs and ensure institutions take concrete, proven steps to assist Pell Grant recipients. We also need annual data on Pell Fellows per institution, broken down by race and ethnicity, to improve graduation rates and promote racial equity in higher education
The US college affordability crisis lasted for decades. We will not undo everything in the shadow of the pandemic. But Congress can greatly reduce college costs for the millions of students in dire need of this assistance by doubling the Pell Grant.
Adzua Agyapon is the Director of Policy and Advocacy for the KIPP Foundation, a nonprofit network of college preparatory schools.
source https://collegeeducationnewsllc.com/forgiving-student-loans-isnt-enough-congress-must-double-pell-grants/
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