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Given growing disparities in college enrollment by household income, policymakers and researchers often are interested in understanding whether policies expand access for low-income students. In this brief, we highlight the limitations of a commonly available measure of low-income status—whether students receive a federal Pell grant—and compare it to new data on enrollment by income quintile to evaluate a recent policy effort within elite colleges aimed at expanding access. We demonstrate that Pell is a rough measure of low-income status and that without more detailed data on colleges' economic diversity, policy evaluations focusing on existing Pell data will suffer from measurement error and potentially miss enrollment effects for moderate- and high-income students.

President Donald Trump on March 20 signed an executive order aimed at dismantling the Department of Education. The administration needs Congressional approval to eliminate the agency in its entirety.

Much of the research examining the question of how federal financial aid affects decisions to enroll in college has focused on the behavior of students in the relatively narrow range immediately following high school graduation, leaving unanswered the question of how changes in the availability of aid affect the behavior of older students. This analysis examines the question of how changes in the means-tested federal Pell grant program affects enrollment decisions of potential students in their twenties and thirties. Our results indicate sizable effects of the introduction of the Pell grant program on college enrollment decisions for older students.

Food insecurity is a global phenomenon which impacts a variety of social, economic, and life-stage groups. One such group affected by food insecurity is college students, who tend to experience food insecurity at a prevalence which exceeds the average of their local communities. The impacts of food insecurity in this population are multifaceted and have implications for their college experience and beyond. Food insecurity has been observed to have negative effects on college student academic performance, physical health, and mental health. This review explores the impacts of and solutions for food insecurity in this population globally, with particular emphasis on the United States, and specifically California.

Background College students may be vulnerable to food insecurity due to limited financial resources, decreased buying power of federal aid, and rising costs of tuition, housing, and food. This study assessed the prevalence of food insecurity and its sociodemographic, health, academic, and food pantry correlates among first-year college students in the United States. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among first-year students ( n  = 855) across eight U.S. universities. Food security status was assessed using the U.S. Department of Agriculture Adult Food Security Survey Module. Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Eating Attitudes Test-26 were used to assess perceived stress, sleep quality, and disordered eating behaviors, respectively. Participants self-reported their grade point average (GPA) and completed questions related to meal plan enrollment and utilization of on-campus food pantries. Results Of participating students, 19% were food-insecure, and an additional 25.3% were at risk of food insecurity. Students who identified as a racial minority, lived off-campus, received a Pell grant, reported a parental education of high school or less, and did not participate in a meal plan were more likely to be food-insecure. Multivariate logistic regression models adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and meal plan enrollment indicated that food-insecure students had significantly higher odds of poor sleep quality (OR = 2.32, 95% CI: 1.43–3.76), high stress (OR = 4.65, 95% CI: 2.66–8.11), disordered eating behaviors (OR = 2.49, 95% CI: 1.20–4.90), and a GPA < 3.0 (OR = 1.91, 95% CI: 1.19–3.07) compared to food-secure students. Finally, while half of the students (56.4%) with an on-campus pantry were aware of its existence, only 22.2% of food-insecure students endorsed utilizing the pantry for food acquisition. Conclusions Food insecurity among first-year college students is highly prevalent and has implications for academic performance and health outcomes. Higher education institutions should screen for food insecurity and implement policy and programmatic initiatives to promote a healthier college experience. Campus food pantries may be useful as short-term relief; however, its limited use by students suggest the need for additional solutions with a rights-based approach to food insecurity. Trial Registration Retrospectively registered on ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT02941497.

In this study, I capitalize on a natural experiment to examine the effect of federal Pell Grant eligibility on college enrollment for students who graduated from high school in spring 2004 and who completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 are used to array students on the continuous Expected Family Contribution (EFC) variable, attained from the FAFSA, and divide them into two categories—those with an EFC at or below the federally designated amount for Pell eligibility, and those above. This regression-discontinuity approach allows me to measure whether students who vary regarding their Pell Grant eligibility, but who have essentially identical family incomes, differ in their college enrollment rates. I find no effect. While confirming prior studies examining the impact of the Pell Grant on college enrollment for traditional students, this finding remains inconsistent with findings on other need-based grants. This result suggests that the minimum Pell Grant amount, currently less than 10% of an average college's tuition and fees, may be insufficient.

Addressing Socioeconomic Barriers to Residency ChoiceRecognizing that financially strapped students find their residency choices constrained by cost-of-living considerations, Mass General Brigham began supplementing the salaries of residents in need.

The “First Year Experience” is a critical component of retention of STEM majors. Often, general chemistry has been labeled as a “gatekeeper” course for STEM careers due to a high attrition rate and a course that leads to increased time for graduation when students are inadequately prepared. We demonstrate that the active learning strategy Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) model increases student retention (%DFW calculated from earned grades A through F plus withdrawals, W) and success (%ABC calculated from earned grades A through F). We have analyzed approximately 24 years of data in general chemistry I (~20,000 students), using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), which showed progressive, significant improvement in both student success and completion metrics. A Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM), using a combination of course and student-level variables, demonstrated the impact of PLTL on internal exam metrics and overall course grades. Further, HLM modeling assessed the impact of PLTL controlling for various student demographics. PLTL strongly impacted URM student completion rates to a greater degree than well-represented students, reducing the URM/non-URM achievement gap.

A primary focus within the field of higher education in prison is to ensure that federal, state, and institution-level polices helping to develop and sustain programs remain durable. Current justifications for policies in support of programs often rely on a predominantly recidivist lens, advocating for programs on the grounds of their likelihood to lower rates of reincarceration and save taxpayers money. However, many advocates argue that such an instrumental approach does not fully capture--and, in fact, might obscure--more foundational civic principles in support of access to higher education in prison. The present article seeks to address the question of how best to justify and defend programs by investigating the perspectives of students themselves, exploring how they articulate the value of their own experiences within a higher education in prison program. Employing interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), the study explores the experiences of 21 formerly incarcerated students who participated in the Boston University Prison Education Program (BUPEP), one of the longest running higher education in prison programs in the country. Participants noted that the program offered a much-needed space to participate in a community of mutual respect and mentorship, develop skills and explore personal interests, and regularly engage in noncoercive, nonprescriptive practices of self-reflection and inquiry. The program provided a space unique within prison contexts, helping to break cycles of both literal and figurative imprisonment. Such findings have important implications for both policy and curricula development within higher education in prison.