Expansion of Title III aid to minority institutions and TRIO
programs for disadvantaged youth emerged as top priorities at a
December 17 public hearing on Higher Education Act (MEA)
reauthorization in Washington, D.C.
Leaders of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs)
sought continued support for Title III plus programmatic changes to
increase the program’s flexibility. For example, Congress could help
HBCUs immensely by allowing them to spend up to 20 percent of Title III
funding to build their endowments, said Dr. Earl Richardson, president
of Morgan. State University.
Richardson, representing the National Association for Equal
Opportunity in Education (NAFEO), also urged the Education Department
(ED) to “reconsider” the current policy that requires Black graduate
schools to match any Title III grant of more than $500,000.
The federal government currently provides $108.9 million in aid to HBCUs plus $19.6 million for HBCU graduate institutions.
TRIO drew support from a variety of higher-education groups which
praised the program’s efforts to recruit low-income, first-generation
students to college.
Despite its successful track record, TRIO currently serves only 5
percent of eligible students, said James Perley, president of the
American Association of University Professors. He also called on the
federal government to use TRIO as an incentive to more federal grant
aid. The government could provide a slightly larger Pell Grant to those
who successfully complete a TRIO program, thereby cutting their future
loan burden.
During the presidential campaign, President Clinton called for
allowing families to deduct college tuition costs of up to $10,000 a
year from their income taxes. He also called for $1,500 in aid to help
students pay for the first two years of college if they maintain a B
average.
