Commissionon the Future of Big her Education
December9, 2005,Nashville, TN
Non-Academic IssuesRelatedto Improving CollegeAccess
for UnderservedStudents
Ann Coles,Sr. Vice President, CollegeAccessand
Director, Pathwaysto CollegeNetwork
TERI (The EducationResourcesInstitute)
who do. only a small oercenta!!ecomolete bachelor'sde!!reesby a!!e24.
90% eighthgraderssaythey wantto go to college,yet only 68 of every 100studentsbeginningninth
gradegraduatefrom high school,and only 40 of thesestudentsenroll in college. (NCHEMS2004)
59% of low-incomehigh schoolgraduatesenroll in college immediatelyafterhigh schoolcomparedwith
88% of high-incomegraduates.(Mortenson2005)
Only 21% of low-incomestudentswho startcollegeearnbachelor'sdegreesby age24, while 93% of
high-incomestudentsenrolling in collegedo so. (Mortenson2005)
colle!!edee:rees.
Only 52% of collegequalified low-incomegraduatesattend4 yr. colleges,comparedwith 83%of high-
incomegraduates.(Advisory Committeeon StudentFinancialAid, 2002)
22% of collegequalified low-incomegraduatesdo not attendcollegeat all, comparedwith 4% of high-
incomegraduates.(Advisory Committee,2002) In real numbersthis meansthat approximately168,000
college-qualifiedgraduatesannuallyare not enrolling in college.
Low-incomehigh schoolgraduatesin the topquartile on achievement testsattendcollegeat the same
rate ashigh-incomehigh schoolgraduatesin the bottor:nquartile onthe sametests-78% for both groups.
(Advisory Committee2001)
Only 21 % of collegequalified low-incomegraduatescompletebachelor'sdegrees,comparewith 62% of
high-incomegraduates.(Advisory Committee,2002)
teachersand
a 'n for colle e.
Motivation' ort:
Colle!!e-!!olDl!; ID Icators --Barriers faced by low-income students
.
~xD~~tions: -
Colle~e-eoin~
in~tors Barriers faced bv low-income students
Parents'collegeexpectations Parentsnot expectingcollege goingbecauseof
Teacherand guidancecounselorcollege inadequateunderstanding andmisperceptionsof benefits
expectations Parents'fears of encouragingcollege-goingbecauseof
Schoolwith college-goingcultureand lack of financialresourcesand familiarity with college
expectationof highacademic andfinancial aid
achievementfor all students Teacherand counselorbeliefs that somestudentsare not
capableof beingpreparedfor and succeedingin
postsecondary education
Someteachersgiving low-incomestudentsless
instructionaltime, encouragement,academicsupport
Schoolsnot assigningall studentsto college prep
curricula (28% low-incomecomparedwith 49%middle-
incomeand 65%high-income)
Colle2eolannin!! resourcesand
Colle~e-2oine
indicators
Attendinga high schoolwith high Lackof infonnationabutcollegeoptions, admission
college-goingrates requirements,financialaid, and applicationprocesses
Accessto informationaboutcollege Misconceptionsaboutcollegecosts
and financial aid Inadequatesystemsfor deliveringcollegeand financialaid
Participatingin collegeplanning planninginfonnationto studentsandfamilies
activitiesand supportwith planning Limited accessto collegeplanningand application
Completingcollegeadmission assistance
applications Lack of connectionsbetweenschoolsand students'
Applying to a four-yearcollege families
Applying for financialaid
Participatingin pre-collegeenrichment
DrogramS
Pavin!! for coUe!!eis major chaUen!!efor lower incomestudents.
Thepercentageof family incomeneededto covernetcollege costs(after grantaid) has increased
significantly for studentslower incomequartilesfrom 1992-93to 2003-04. (CollegeBoard, 2005)
Lowest quartile 2ndquartile 3rGquartile Highestquartile1!!~~
2003 (1992) 2003(1992) 2003(1992)
I
(1992)
Public2 yr. 37. (29.) 19. (15.) ] 13. (13.) 7. (6.)
Public 4yr.~te4yr.
47. (41.) 26. (22.) 18. (16.) 11.(10.)
83. (60.) 41. (33.) ~U~)- 19.(17.)
Lowest quartile: 0-$34,000; 2ndquartile: $34,000-62,000; 3rdquartile: $62,000 -94,000; highest quartile:
$94,000+
...
~
Between1990and2004,unmetneedincreasedsignificantlyin constantdollars(adjustedfor inflation)
for studentsin the lowertwo incomequartiles. (Mortenson,2005)
Low-income families andunder-represented minoritieslack informationaboutpayingfor collegeand
financialaid. (Sallie MaeFundHarris Poll 2004)
-45% of low-incomeparentshave"no idea" howto pay for college
-62% low-incomeparentsdid not namegrantsasa sourceof aid
-Minority familiesexpressedgreatneedfor aid information.Latino parentsreceivedaid information
2 yrs. later than others.
Parentswith no directexperiencewith college(their own or anotherchild's) haveless,and lessaccurate,
knowledgeof collegepricesand financialaid thanparentswho havedirectexperience.(Perna,TERI
2004)
Studentaid programdesignand operationdo not targetstudentsor parentsearly in the education
pipeline,and early marketingefforts haveminimal impact. Most studentsand their parentsacquire
collegeprice and financialaid informationduringthe final years of highschool,likely after havingmade
decisions(particularlyacademic)thatinfluencetheir ability to attendcollege. (Perna2004)
Good counselingresultsin statisticallyprovendifferencesin students'feelingthat theyhave enough
infonnation. Whentheyareavailable,counselorsare seenas primary andreliable sourcesof
infonnation, especiallyfor aspirationsandplans in middleschool,andfor providing informationabut
collegecostsand financialaid in lId! and 12d!grade. (McDonough,TERI 2004)
Basedon existing research,the averageschoolcounseloris relativelyunavailablefor anycollegetask,
and mostlyuninformedaboutcostsand financialaid. The leastavailableand leastinformed counselors
are in schoolsthat servelargenumbersof low-incomeand minority students.(McDonough2004)
colle!!eaccess.Examnles of research-basedstrate!!iesinclude the followin~:
Developstudents/parentsknowledgeof economicand socialbenefitsof collegethroughinfonnation,
role modelsand careerexploration.
Provide experiences for students on college campuses,beginning in elementary gradesand continuing
through high school.
Provideparentswith infonnationand encouragement
to help their childrenplan for college,
Use mediaand otherforumsto raisepublic awareness
of importanceof collegefor all students.
Organize social marketing campaigns to prompt studentsand parents to take actions to prepare and plan
for college.
.
Developpartnershipsbetweenschoolsandcollegesto provideearlyand ongoingcollegeawareness
activities,academicsupport,and collegeplanningand financialaid applicationassistance.
Provide all studentswith opportunitiesto earncollegecreditswhile in high schoolthroughdual
enrollment,AP, ill and earlycollegehigh schoolprograms.
Ali~ high school graduation standards with requirement for coUege admission and successin first year
college courses. "
Focus on fIrst-year college students, providing comprehensive support services that are prescriptive and
proactive.
Integratewith teachinglearning,including supplementalinstruction,learningcommunities,and peer
studygroups.
Make need-baaed grantsthe primary form of aid for low-incomestudents;limit loan burdenandthe
necessityfor full-time studentsto work morethan 15hrs.a week.
Strengthenrelationshipsbetweencommunitycollegesand4 yr. collegesto supportthe transitionof
studentsto bachelordegreeprograms.
TERI 0 ...lic schools in Boston and other Massachusetts cities
local co and the Massachusetts Board of Hi her Education
that helD stuoents ana lam Illes overcome non-academic barriers to colle!!e access.
Communitybasedaccesscentersin Bostonpublic library branchesandneighborhoodcentersprovide
free information,adviceand applicationassistanceto youngpeopleand adultlearnerson a walk-in basis
and by phone. TERI hashelpedlaunchsimilar centersat public libraries in Washington,DC, Charlotte,
NC, Milwaukee,and SanFrancisco.
TERI's early awarenessprograms include Kids to College, a program that pairs colleges with 6thgrade
classrooms for six weeks of college and career exploration, culminating with a day on campus, and Get
.
Ready for College, which brings college staff and students into every Sdlgrade classroom in Boston to
talk about what students need to do to prepare for college.
Our federallyfundedGEAR UPand Talent Searchprogramsplacestaff in schoolstwo daysa week,
providing information,advising,and enrichmentactivitiesto studentsbeginningin 7thgradeand
continuingthroughhigh schoolgraduation.The college-goingratesfor participantsin bothprograms
exceedthe ratesfor BostonPublic studentsnot receivingsuchsupport.
Hit school programs include COACH, in which college students serving as coaches work with 11thand
12 grades once a week in small groups, helping them through the college exploration and admission and
financial aid application processes.
TERI also helpedto launchACCESS,a financialaid advisingand lastdollar scholarshipprogram
modeledafterthe ClevelandScholarshipProgramand supportedwith a $10 million endowment
establishedby Boston'sbusinessleadersto ensurethat lack of financialresourceswould not be a barrier
to college-qualifiedgraduatesof the city's public schoolsgoingto college.
Future of Hi!!her Education:
1. Promotestrong partnershipsamongfederal,state,local, institutional(collegeanduniversities),and
private sectorentitiesto undertakesystemicandintegratedeffortsto facilitate studenttransitionsalongthe
collegepipeline, from elementaryschoolthroughdegreecompletionto work and furthereducation.
2. Advocate for increasedneed-basedgrantaid for studentsin the lower-incomequartiles,involving
financialaid providersat all levels(federal,state,institutionalandprivate sector)working togetherto create
the policies andresourcesneededto removecostasa barrierto collegereadystudentsenrolling in
postsecondary programs.
3. Provide incentives for higher education institutions to make long-term commitments to working actively
and collaboratively with K-12 schools and systemsto help underservedstudents get ready for college and to
increasing the retention and degree completion of underserved studentsthey enroll.
4. Encouragethe adoptionof the research-based principlesdevelopedby the Pathwaysto CollegeNetwork
to guideactionsof leadersin educationand all sectorsof societyto advancecollegeaccessand successfor
underservedstudents.The PathwaysNetwork is an allianceof 40 nationalorganizationsand funders
working collaborativelyto improvethe collegepreparation,enrollment,and completionof low-income
students,under-represented minorities,studentswho arethe first generationin their families to go to college,
and studentswith disabilities.
