According to the Department of Education (Federal Student Aid Handbook, 2016), the cost of attendance is an estimate of a student's educational expenses for the period of enrollment. Cost of attendance is not only as important to consider as tuition and fees (which are only one component of cost of attendance), but it serves as the cornerstone of…

Students and families all over the country are saving, working, taking out loans, and taking steps to make college affordable. Yet they still find themselves facing an unreasonably high price for college, with unexpected, and sometimes untenable, expenses, and fall short of the resources they need to successfully complete degrees. Financial…

California community colleges (CCC) enroll nearly one-quarter of the nation's community college students. Low fees and open-admission policies in this sector provide critical access to many students who otherwise might not attend college. This is particularly true of low-income students, at least one-quarter of all CCC students. Even though CCCs…