Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended) authorizes the primary sources of federal aid to support postsecondary education students. Title IV programs made over $118 billion in aid available to postsecondary students in FY2020 through Direct Loans and other forms of aid, including $27 billion in Pell Grants. The…

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended), authorizes numerous federal aid programs that provide support to both individuals pursuing a postsecondary education and institutions of higher education (IHEs). The FAFSA Simplification Act (FSA; Title VII, Division FF of P.L. 116-260) makes significant changes to the underlying…

The Pell Grant is the foundational need-based student aid program in the United States, providing students of lower socio-economic status a pathway to afford college costs and educational expenses. Currently, over one-third of all U.S. undergraduate students receive Pell. This paper examines federal Pell assistance and institutional costs for…

Harris-Stowe State University is a relatively small university located in Missouri's largest metropolitan area. Yet the students at Harris-Stowe are clearly different from the students at the other eleven Missouri public universities. The student body of Harris-Stowe is predominantly African American, over 85 percent. Harris-Stowe State University…

In this perspectives brief, authors James Kvaal and Jessica Thompson explore the challenge of college affordability and summarize the campaign proposals to address it. Driven by steadily rising college costs and student debt, the 2020 presidential campaign has put the issues of college costs and student debt on the agenda as never before. Many…

This report provides a brief overview of the major provisions of the Higher Education Act (HEA), organized by title and part. Appendix A of this report provides detailed appropriations figures for HEA programs, from FY2019 through FY2023. Appendix B gives a brief overview of the General Education Provisions Act, which applies to the majority of…

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended) authorizes programs and activities to provide support to individuals who are pursuing a postsecondary education and to institutions of higher education (IHEs). During the 116th Congress, the House Committee on Education and Labor marked up and ordered to be reported the College…

Workers today increasingly need postsecondary education to access consistent employment and livable wages, with an estimated 65 percent of jobs requiring some form of postsecondary credential as of 2020. The financial barriers to higher education are particularly high for Black Americans, who on average carry less than a quarter of the familial…

This brief is intended as an evidence-based guide for policy analysts and decision makers to inform critical areas in the Higher Education Authorization Act related to racial justice. Our recommendations prioritize combating systemic racism in higher education with a particular focus on disrupting anti-Blackness, though several sections focus on…

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329), as amended, authorizes a broad array of federal student aid programs that assist students and their families with financing the cost of a postsecondary education, as well as programs that provide federal support to postsecondary institutions of higher education (IHEs). Programs authorized by the…

When President Obama maps out his plans for his next four years as the nation's chief executive, presidents in higher education are hoping he keeps his commitment to support and boost federal support for their institutions. When recently asked to identify three issues in higher education they felt were most important for the president to address…

TG provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This issue of "State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas"…

The SREB Fact Book on Higher Education includes data on the population and economy, enrollment, degrees, student tuition and financial aid, faculty and administrators, revenue and expenditures. With more than 100 tables of detailed information, the Fact Book is one of the nation's most respected and most comprehensive collections of comparative…

This quantitative research study used ex post facto data to analyze possible relationships between a discrete set of independent variables and academic achievement among provisionally admitted students at a public, four-year historically black university located in the mid-Atlantic United States. The independent variables were first-generation…

The Education Department's 1988 budget plan would require students to put more of their income toward paying college costs, and it would eliminate some student-aid programs such as College Work Study. The department's top priority was the education of younger children and ensuring that people graduate from high school. (MLW)