Though Poorer, Hispanics Less Likely to Get Financial Aid than Whites
WASHINGTON — Hispanic college students are less likely to get financial aid than Whites — though Hispanics are three times likelier to be poor, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau study.
The study found that 59 percent of 6.8 million White full-time college students received financial aid in the 1993-94 school year. Among 783,000 Hispanic students, 57 percent received aid. Of the 1 million Black students in college during that time, 77 percent received aid.
Income disparities between White and Hispanic families suggest that Hispanics would be likelier to receive aid for college, says Jennifer Day, a Census Bureau demographer and the report’s primary author.
“Financial aid is a lot about knowing the system,” Day says. “Whether they just don’t know the system or don’t have as many scholarships, I don’t know.”
The findings indicate a communication gap between Hispanic students and financial aid sources, says Dr. Antonio Flores, president of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities in San Antonio.
“Many Hispanic families are not even aware of the availability of financial aid,” he says. “They don’t even apply, though they would be eligible.”
Steve Murdock, the data center’s director, says Hispanics may be less likely to receive aid than Whites despite lower incomes because “they’re much less likely to be in a position to ask for it.”
Many Hispanic college students are the first in their families to pursue a degree and know little about paying for college.
“For many of them, just filling out a financial aid form — which seems like no big deal — is extremely threatening,” Flores says.
NAFEO Touts Research Agenda
WASHINGTON — Greater access to federal research dollars and college preparation grants are among the top priorities for Black colleges in 2000, a leading minority higher education official says.
“We want more research funds from all agencies. The country has not done right by these institutions,” says Dr. Henry Ponder, executive director of the National Association of Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, or NAFEO.
Black colleges have the expertise to handle large federal research grants, but too often they are shut out of the most prestigious projects, Ponder complains.
But in 2000, NAFEO will target Congress and individual federal agencies, pressing them to boost research funding for Black colleges while working with the White House to include more funding in its annual budget plan.
With more research money, Black colleges also could develop more cutting-edge facilities such as those available at Johns Hopkins University, the University of Michigan and other institutions that rely heavily on federal research funds, he says.
To prepare youth for higher education, Black colleges need a stronger role in the new Gear Up program, the college access program originally proposed by Rep. Chaka Fattah, D-Pa., a Congressional Black Caucus member.
The program received first-year funding of $140 million in 1999, but few Black colleges received initial grants as either a primary or secondary recipient, Ponder said.
“You couldn’t have written a program more for Black colleges if you tried,” he says. “But when it came to funding, very few of our institutions were involved. We should be lead agencies in these projects.”
Other NAFEO priorities for the 2000 congressional season include:
n Title III and student aid. NAFEO wants increases in core programs for Black colleges and disadvantaged students, including Pell grants and the Title III-B program for HBCUs.
n Teacher education. Congress must reauthorize the nation’s main K-12 education law this year, and Ponder contends Black colleges can have a major role to play in teacher training, a key issue in these deliberations. Among African Americans, education degrees still rank among the most popular.
n Historic preservation. The U.S. General Accounting Office says Black colleges need $750 million to preserve and renovate their historic buildings. Though Congress passed legislation to permit federal spending on such activities, few funds have been set aside.
Report: Funding Doesn’t Match Higher Percentage of Students
