Created in 1972, the Pell Grant program awards grants to low-income students to help pay for whatever accredited U.S. college they choose. Totaling $28.4 billion in 2019-20, the program is the most significant source of federal student aid for college. However, as the program turns 50 this year, many advocates are hoping to expand its reach and…

Paying for college is often a family affair, with both parents and students contributing. We study the effects of college on family finances using administrative data on the universe of federal aid applicants in California linked to credit records. We provide the first comprehensive analysis of how both students and their parents use debt with…

The affordability gap between college costs and available financial resources was a barrier to college access before COVID-19, but the pandemic deepened basic-needs insecurity and highlighted unmet need--the shortfall between students' total costs and the funds available to them through grants or family support. The Higher Education Emergency…

Purpose: We used data from the National Survey of Children's Health to (1) examine differences in economic hardship and safety net program use after the implementation of federal relief efforts, and (2) assess whether the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated autism-based disparities in hardship and program use. Methods: We examined five dimensions of…

Objective/Research Question: This study explores the potential for virtual international exchange to serve as a high impact practice that improves academic outcomes, defined credential completion, and GPA among low-income students enrolled at two community colleges in the U.S. Southeast. Specifically, we ask: What is the relationship between…

Scholarly assessments of Philippine education during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos understandably focus on its authoritarian bent. What many neglect is how his dictatorship, in partnership with the World Bank (WB), incubated neoliberal education in the country. While there are academic analyses that show how WB loan programmes influenced…

This article presents a synthesized historiography of higher education in American prisons, exploring interactions of federal, state, and institution-level policies within six specific states: California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, and Texas. We define considerations for researchers, policymakers, and advocates regarding…

Retention rates in higher education continue to be a prevalent issue especially for community colleges and will become a bigger issue in the current climate of enrollment loss. Much literature regarding student retention focuses on broad, overarching findings, but it is important to understand institution-specific retention factors. The purpose of…

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Congress has allocated just under $190 billion to support K-12 education. As Maria Ferguson explains, these much-needed funds will require states and districts to make plans for how best to use them, and the planning process is complicated in districts that are already stretched and facing…

The pandemic brought the rural broadband gap into stark relief, as schools shuttered and many families lacked the internet access and devices necessary to connect their students to high-quality online learning. State boards of education can help solve the rural broadband connectivity challenge and expand learning opportunities. To do so, they…

In 2023, the 118th Congress will reauthorize the federal Farm Bill, the primary legislation through which Congress supports the nation's system of land-grant colleges and universities for teaching, research, and cooperative extension, which supports local agriculture and the agricultural sciences. This report examines the contributions of and…

This publication provides a summary of data relating to students, programs, subjects and training providers in Australia's government-funded vocational education and training (VET) system, defined as all Commonwealth and state or territory government-funded training delivered by technical and further education (TAFE) institutes, other government…

Post-secondary education (PSE) and research play a critical role in advancing the economic, social, cultural, and political development of Canada. The federal government supports public PSE in Canada through myriad mechanisms such as tax measures, grants and loans to students, research funding, and the Canada Social Transfer (CST). This report was…

The William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program is the single largest source of federal financial assistance to support students' postsecondary educational pursuits. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that in FY2024, $85.8 billion in new loans will be made through the program. As of the end of the first quarter of FY2023,…

What barriers to compliance do research administrators face at liberal arts colleges and predominantly undergraduate institutions? What solutions can be offered to overcome these challenges? All academic institutions that receive government funding must abide by the same federally imposed rules and regulations for financial assistance, whether for…