When students can find commonalities with others at a university in terms of race, ethnicity, or first-generation status, they also build a strong identity and, in turn, find a sense of belonging. We studied a Title V student center, "The Center," at a Hispanic-Serving Institution, using a counterspaces framework to understand how…

This study examined a Title V Student Center within a Hispanic Serving Institution and how it acted as a counterspace for undergraduate students. The Center provided multiple academic and non-academic supports that students utilized, including mentoring, office hours, and programming. It also provided a place for community development, offering a…

The gap between the matriculation rates of Hispanic undergraduate students and their graduation rates warrants a closer look, as the degree attainment of Hispanics is necessary for the nation's academic and economic health (Freeman & Martinez, 2015). Rural four-year Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) are an important piece of this puzzle as…

In recent years, historically underrepresented students have become a larger segment in higher education. Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization is an opportunity to increase educational attainment levels; close equity gaps and address racial disparities in student outcomes; and ensure the federal government, states, and institutions transform…

The Federal Perkins Loan Program Extension Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-105) was put in place to extend temporarily the Federal Perkins Loan program, and for other purposes. The act is organized into the following sections: (1) Short Title; (2) Extension of Federal Perkins Loan Program (Authority to Make Loans--In General: Section 462 of the Higher…

As college costs continue to rise, students and their families increasingly rely on federal loans to help pay for college expenses. In 2011-12, over half of all undergraduates (52 percent) had borrowed money from the federal government to fund their education, compared with just over one-quarter (27 percent) in 1989-90, some 2 decades. Although…

The Federal Pell Grant program, authorized by Title IV-A-1 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, (HEA; P.L. 89-329), as amended, is the single largest source of federal grant aid supporting undergraduate students. The program provided approximately $29 billion in aid to approximately 7.2 million undergraduate students in FY2017. Pell Grants are…

Federal financial aid was established under the Higher Education Act of 1965. Since then, changes to the act have increased funding and expanded eligibility for students accessing federal financial aid. While the distribution of federal financial aid has expanded over the last 60 years, untapped financial resources remain every year because…

Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) enroll over 60 percent of Latino undergraduates and generally enroll a high enrollment of needy students with relatively limited resources. The federal government has funded the development of HSIs since 1995 to expand and enhance their capacity, quality, and the educational achievement of their Latinos and…

The primary purpose of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) Campus-Based Aid Allocation Task Force was to examine the formula by which congressional appropriations for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Work-Study (FWS), and Perkins Loan programs are distributed to schools,…

Counselors who work in a college environment are aware that financial aid is available to help students with college costs, but they may not be aware of all the financial pressures on students that may influence a student's psychological well-being. This article gives an overview of financial aid programs and financial factors affecting students,…

The original goal of the Higher Education Act of 1965, the amendments to that act in 1972, and reauthorizations through 1998 was to increase accessibility of higher education to all. Initially these system-level efforts substantially enhanced equity, but recent enrollment trends raise the question: Is our system becoming more or less equitable? By…

For-profit, or proprietary, colleges are the fastest-growing postsecondary schools in the nation, enrolling a disproportionately high share of disadvantaged and minority students and those ill-prepared for college. Because these schools, many of them big national chains, derive most of their revenue from taxpayer-funded student financial aid, they…

This "First Look" presents findings from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) spring 2011 data collection. This collection included five components: Student Financial Aid for the 2009-10 academic year; Enrollment for fall 2010; Graduation Rates within 150 percent of normal program completion time for full-time,…

This "First Look" presents findings from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) spring 2010 data collection. This collection included five components: Student Financial Aid for full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students for the 2009-10 academic year; Enrollment for fall 2009; Graduation…