News Release
December 15, 2004
Lumina Foundation and Scholarship America provide emergency aid for community college students
Indianapolis — Lumina Foundation for Education and Scholarship America have teamed up on a three-year pilot project to provide emergency aid for community college students who might otherwise drop out of school. The beneficiaries of the aid will be students enrolled in 11 community colleges in five states (see list below).Lumina Foundation awarded a $1.5 million grant to Scholarship America to help design and test the program with a group of community colleges. The colleges will each receive $20,000 to $100,000 from the fund. They are expected to match the grant dollars with other funds that they raise or choose to dedicate for this purpose. The grant will provide a vehicle and encouragement for other community funders willing to support the needs of community college students in their respective areas. Scholarship America will administer the program in cooperation with the selected institutions.
Historically underserved students attending community colleges often fail to persist because of a variety of insurmountable financial barriers. A student may be forced to drop out for lack of a relatively small sum to buy books, pay a car-repair bill, or to afford temporary child care. Regular financial aid programs typically fail to meet these kinds of needs, which arise after other forms of financial aid have already been assigned.
“Community colleges have told us that one way to help keep these students in school is to establish a fund that would help colleges address their emergency needs," said Martha D. Lamkin, CEO and president of Lumina Foundation. “This program will be designed to support the success of these students by cultivating a mechanism for institutions and communities to respond to their particular needs.”
The 11 colleges selected for the Scholarship America pilot are part of the Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count initiative, a national initiative to increase the success of community college students, particularly those in groups that have been underserved in higher education. Funded by Lumina Foundation, the initiative is managed by MDC, Inc. and includes several other partner organizations: the American Association of Community Colleges; the Community College Leadership Program at the University of Texas-Austin; the Community College Research Center, Teacher’s College, Columbia University; The Futures Project at Brown University; Jobs for the Future; MDRC; and Public Agenda.
Twenty Achieving the Dream schools applied for the pilot program. The selected colleges had to demonstrate the ability to: administer emergency student aid, raise matching funds, and stimulate community funding. The schools also had to agree to designate a person to manage the fund and administer the program, in addition to keeping records for evaluation of the program.
“Expanding access to education is vital for our nation. When we help those who seek an education, we are not only improving their lives but also the quality of life for others in their community,” said Clifford L. Stanley, Major General, USMC (Retired), president of Scholarship America. “We look forward to using the grant from Lumina Foundation for Education to help these students keep their educational dreams alive.”
Responding to a substantial obstacle to persistence is consistent with the mission of the Lumina Foundation, according to Lamkin. “The Foundation is using a limited amount of money to design and test a program that can stimulate institutions to respond to emergency needs that regular forms of financial aid do not address.”
“If successful, the Foundation’s investment could do far more than meet the emergency needs of the students included in the pilot project,” said Lamkin. “It could lead to a national model, helping schools learn how to support the real-life needs of nontraditional students and enlisting the help of community resources to extend the life of the program.”
The following community colleges were selected to participate:
Florida
Broward Community College, Fort Lauderdale
Hillsborough Community College, Tampa
New Mexico
Albuquerque Technical Vocational Institute, Albuquerque
Santa Fe Community College, Santa Fe
North Carolina
Durham Technical Community College, Durham
Martin Community College, Williamston
Wayne Community College, Goldsboro
Texas
Coastal Bend College, Beeville
Galveston College, Galveston
Virginia
Mountain Empire Community College, Big Stone Gap
Patrick Henry Community College, Martinsville
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About Lumina Foundation for Education
Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based, private, independent foundation, strives to help people achieve their potential by expanding access and success in education beyond high school. Through grants for research, innovation, communication, and evaluation, as well as policy education and leadership development, Lumina Foundation addresses issues that affect access and educational attainment among all students, particularly underserved student groups, including adult learners. The Foundation bases its mission on the belief that postsecondary education remains one of the most beneficial investments that individuals can make in themselves and that society can make in its people.
About Scholarship America
Scholarship America, the nation’s largest nonprofit, private-sector scholarship and educational support organization, carries out its mission to expand access to educational opportunities and encourage academic achievement through its three primary programs: Dollars for Scholars, Scholarship Management Services, and ScholarShop. Scholarship America has distributed more than $1 billion to nearly one million students through its scholarship and educational support programs since its founding in 1958.
