Less than 23% of public bachelor’s degree institutions are affordable for a student receiving the average Pell Grant and community college students don’t fare much better – with just 41% of institutions affordable. NCAN recommends coupling a federal-state partnership with a doubling of the Pell Grant to both control the cost of college and provide additional support to help students from low-income backgrounds to close the financial aid gap.
The federal government should invest in a federal-state partnership that incentivizes states to invest in need-based aid and in stabilizing or reducing the cost of college for students by providing matching funds. NCAN supports the proposal from partner TICAS as a top model for how to implement such a program.
However, should this investment instead be designed as a free college program, NCAN recommends that the program include careful contemplation of equity issues including a focus on the needs of NCAN’s target population students, a recognition of the challenge in ensuring positive outcomes for all students, and the ability to help students meet the full cost of attendance by supplementing, not supplanting, federal student aid.
NCAN Recommends:
Implement a first-dollar program that covers all tuition and fees before applying federal or other state grant aid.
Allow for federal need-based aid (including the Pell Grant) and state need-based aid programs beyond “free” college to cover non-tuition and fee expenses included in the full cost of attendance.
Fund public, in-state institutions as priority and extend to private, non-profit institutions if possible
Support the participation of low- and middle-income students by retaining a need-based element in the participation requirements if program participation must be limited for cost purposes,
Include both associate’s and bachelor’s level degrees,
Include both dependent and independent students of any age,
Include both full-time and half-time students,
Set a lifetime eligibility limit no shorter than 150 percent of the degree length, and
Require a Maintenance of Effort (MOE) agreement with each state to maintain their investments in their higher education system and their need-based aid programs.
