Higher Education Policy

Improved Essays
Gilbert, C. K., & Heller, D. E. (2013). Access, Equity, and Community Colleges: The Truman Commission and Federal Higher Education Policy from 1947 to 2011. Journal Of Higher Education, 84(3), 417-443.

Gilbert & Heller (2013) posits that the Truman Commission and Federal Education Policy has set out policy to ensure equal access to higher education for all students regardless of income or achievement level and provided more federal funding to increase the role of community college availability to students of all economic levels. The research also indicated that there are some initiatives of the policy that have been implemented. One way that this disparity could be effectively limited would be if the federal government provided the bulk
…show more content…
It was during the early 1960s and 70s when the initial use of financial aid was state driven to afford low to moderate income level students the ability to afford college. At this time the financial aid was provided as a grant and was established under the State Student Incentive Grant Program. However according to (Hossler, 2000; McPherson & Shapiro, 1991) the ultimate purpose of the state grants were more complex. These earlier grants would provide support to colleges and universities, reward service to country, provide a remedy for past injustices, and stimulate future work sources in areas of shortage (Hossler, …show more content…
Changes to policy are inevitable and changes are often undertaken to afford equal access to federally mandated programs such as scholarships and grants. However, what much of this research did not address was what happened to any unused financial aids or scholarships. The issues of potential for fraud, waste, and abuse of those finances were raised in this literature. To combat this safeguards were put in place and in some cases the funds were no longer released directly to the students but instead released to the colleges (Linsley, 1997). On a community level the same fear may exist of fraud, waste, and abuse of scholarship funds because the check is often made out directly to the student. It is up to the student to manage their scholarship money in order to complete the college degree, vocational or

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    In the article “Sentenced to Debt”, authors Scot Ross and Mike Brown accentuate the battle between higher learning organizations and big suit legislation to come up with an agreeable solution to the financial aid plight troubling millions of Americans. The majority of college students are burdened with lifelong debt in suit of pursuing their childhood career aspirations and often detracting from other pecuniary objectives such as vehicle or property ownership. At the beginning the writers use 2 individuals from separate walks of life as a model examples of the catch 22 that has become a finical crisis topic of recent years affecting all social classes by significantly decreasing turnover ratio following investing in a college degree; interest…

    • 306 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    has restrictions in place to prevent the abuse of funding, it does not specify a specific amount of participants eligible for aid. It would be a benefit for any company to implement a policy that enforces a standard of reimbursement based on the type of business they run and their availability of funding. Not all companies are able to sufficiently provide tuition assistance to their employees. It is important for companies to determine which employees can be granted aid by noting specific references to eligibility and funding in their tuition reimbursement contracts. This is not only the most ethical approach to determining how funding is given, but ensures that restrictions are in place to follow all state and federal…

    • 951 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In making conversation, I frequently asked new peers, “What about your financial aid?” No one had warned me that this might be a bad idea. I was appalled to hear from most students that they would not receive financial aid at all and that they would, instead, foot the bill. I could not imagine paying $65,000 a year for a college education and the idea was mind-blowing. I realized, though, that just as I did not understand the life contexts of these individuals, it was unlikely that they well understood my own life context.…

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Students who get adequate funds will be more confident to focus on study. It is easy to imagine the feeling that we can get assistance from financial aid. With the assistance of funds, we don’t need to worry about working and balancing how long we should study and how much we need to pay. We only need to focus on study, so we can get enough confidence to study in college. Besides, it is more significant to relieve the stress on students and their parents.…

    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Argument Over the past 20 years, in-state tuition and fees at public National Universities, have increased a ridiculous 296 percent, according to U.S. News. This increase has made receiving a higher education extremely difficult for lower middle class and poorer families. Often if these families try to send their children to college, they either pile on debt or tell their child they’re on their own. Both of these situations can cause issues such as family tension, crippling financial situations, and often a situation that is very difficult to get out of.…

    • 1679 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Affirmative Action Case Study

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 4 Works Cited

    However, he notes, “truly meeting the needs of low-income students would require fundamental reforms in financial aid.” He alludes to the early days of the Penn Grant, which in the beginning covered 84% of college expenses, making attending college for the poor a real possibility. Today, the Penn Grant covers half that, or only 42% of the costs of college. For many low-income families, sending their kids to college has become a financial impossibility. Many poor students end up going to community colleges, the cheaper alternative.…

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 4 Works Cited
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    It’s hard to believe that once upon time, Americans did not have the dreadful worries of finding a way to prepare for the financial necessities for college. Now, college is becoming more of a dream rather than a reality as high tuition rates becomes the number one reason why Americans are not advancing themselves into higher education. In some cases, there are college students who receive full-ride scholarships to the college they desire; however, the majority of those who do go to college do not obtain the same luck. Those students who do continue their education and go off to college find themselves short of financial aid, out-of-pocket cash, and even scholarships. This causes students to resort to taking out a student loan.…

    • 1550 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Universities that fail to commit to equity lose their legitimacy as a public good and risk further loss of state support. Recruitment of lower-middle and working class students helps universities make a case for equity and inclusion. These students or “strivers” fit the "mobility pathway" and attended college as a means of moving up the social class ladder by earning practical degrees to help secure immediate employment after graduation (Armstrong and Hamilton 2013). Educating strivers, however, is costly due to their inability to contribute fully to college tuition. Lastly, universities engage in a prestige arms race to boost national rankings and improve academic reputations.…

    • 961 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    SHOULD COMMUNITY COLLEGE BE FREE? Laila Tabbaa Florida Gulf Coast University Abstract In this argumentative research paper, through the author's opinion answers the question whether community colleges should be free. Taking the opponent's approach, the paper gives sufficient reasons as to why the writer chose that direction.…

    • 1679 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Spending for each state is almost ten billion dollars on which is used for financial aid. Seventy-six billion dollars is spent supporting higher education (Samuels, 2013). It could be possible to make community college tuition-free by using each states current resources in the form of tax breaks and other deductions for tuition (Samuels, 2013). Most schools increase their price to subsidize financial aid for low-income students if that system was removed and the state and federal government issue a certain amount of money for each student, the cost of education could be significantly lower (Samuels,…

    • 1905 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Since Alan W. Purdy created Financial aid for college students it has worked wonders for them. Purdy created financial aid in 1965 during the higher education act. Purdy was the first chairman over the whole thing. During these days, students were poor and accepting everything that they could get from the…

    • 1033 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Debt In College

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The reason the past suggestions haven’t worked is because people aren’t motivated to apply for scholarships also the fact that in general the average person isn’t good with their money and the method of monitoring themselves would only succeed if the rules were followed perfectly which would be hard to do. As Steve O. Michael, the President of the Association for the Global Advancement of Universities and Colleges (AGAUC), states, “… the United States…governments fund only a part of the higher education cost and institutions work hard to obtain funds from other sources and to implement cost reduction strategies. ”(Pg 15 par. 1). With this lack of funding from the government campuses have turned away from the students and turn their attention towards finding other ways to help pay for their building and salaries.…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many have asked, is there really a difference between community college and a four year university. The answer is, yes, of course because of the smaller classes, academics, and advantages one might receive from a community college experience. Four year colleges, on the other hand, have bigger classes, higher academic standards, and a completely different atmosphere. Community colleges offer more one on one help, because of the class sizes.…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    One with a four-year college degree might make $52,000, while an advanced degree could merit $67,000.” The benefits of higher education are vital to the livelihood of college students entering the workforce. States have tried to help students with the cost of colleges through the use of financial grants, especially merit-based scholarships. There are just not enough funds within these scholarships to make sure that students don’t end up in…

    • 1364 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Should College Be Free? Over the past few years, the cost of higher education has become unbearable for most. The cost for an opportunity to become more educated is quite frightening. On average, public colleges cost $32,762 while private colleges are priced at $42,419 on average (Bridgestock, 2015).…

    • 764 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays