Dive Brief:
- Many higher education institutions share a goal of increasing the number of low-income students on their campuses, but in practice, finding the money and on-campus resources to support their educations is difficult.
- The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Missouri schools range in the portion of Pell Grant eligible students on their campuses from 7% to 90%, and some colleges have addressed tight budgets with more aggressive recruitment of higher-income families who can pay more tuition.
- It is harder to improve graduation and retention rates with more low-income students, who often went to less rigorous high schools and aren’t as prepared for college-level work, but advocates say colleges have the responsibility to recruit them and then support them through their studies.
Dive Insight:
At a time when a college degree is more important than ever to secure a well-paying job, some say colleges, especially public ones, have a responsibility to educate the full spectrum of students — those who come from low-income families as well as wealthier ones. Virgil Jones, CEO of Upward Bound, an organization that helps first-generation college students through the application process and their first years of college, says it’s unfair for schools to accept underrepresented students and then not give them the supports they need to succeed.
K-12 schools are facing the same problems achieving greater economic diversity, which studies show improves the educational quality overall. Across the educational spectrum, it’s hard work to combat persistent inequality. But, of course, it’s work that has to be done.