State lags on student grants

Limiting access for low-income

Massachusetts, a higher education hub known for its wealth of universities, is far stingier than most other large states in awarding financial aid to college students, a shortfall that many educators say is limiting college access for low-income and minority families.

At about $83 million, the state's budget for financial aid grants for the upcoming academic year badly trails those in comparable states. Indiana, for instance, doled out $331 million, while South Carolina, which has about 2 million fewer residents than Massachusetts, spent $273 million.

"Massachusetts is definitely not investing in students going on to college at anywhere near the rate of the leading states," said Kati Haycock, president of The Education Trust, a national group working to improve college access for poor and minority students. "In this kind of economy, that's go ing to have serious consequences in terms of the availability of college-educated workers."

The escalating cost of attending Massachusetts colleges - both public and private - makes the funding shortage more acute. Nationally, state grant aid covers about 19 percent of college costs; in Massachusetts, it covers less than 5 percent. For example, students who qualify for the state's main grant program, which assists low-income residents, receive an average of about $780 - a sum they say does not even pay for their textbooks.

"There's simply not enough money in the system," said State Senator Robert O'Leary, chairman of the Joint Committee on Higher Education. "It just hasn't kept pace with the growth in costs and the increasing number of students who need financial aid. Every year, we're losing ground."

Massachusetts has traditionally spent relatively little on financial aid, educators say, relying on the institutions, particularly deep-pocketed private colleges, to provide the bulk of tuition assistance. Because Massachusetts students are much more likely than their national peers to attend wealthier private universities, state lawmakers have long viewed financial aid as a secondary priority. During economic downturns, college assistance has been a frequent target of cutbacks. And in recent years, sharp increases in spending on K-12 education and healthcare have also crowded out increases, lawmakers said.

The state's program awards aid to universities and also directly to students, supplementing any money they may receive through federal grants and loans and, in a growing number of cases, private loans. A huge chunk - about 40 percent - goes to students attending pricier private universities in Massachusetts, according to the National Association of State Student Grant and Aid Programs.

The dearth of state aid leaves many students unable to cobble together the money they need. That has broad consequences, educators say. It often forces college students to take out more loans and work more hours during school, slowing or derailing their path to a degree. It is likely to prevent countless students from attending at all, hindering social mobility and the strength of the state's workforce, observers say.

"It's not only a matter of social justice, it's an economic imperative," said Patricia F. Plummer, commissioner of the Department of Higher Education. "I think some students are being priced out, especially first-generation college students."

Plummer said higher education officials have lobbied aggressively for larger increases but had little success. The need for financial aid is likely to increase over the next decade, Plummer and other educators said, as the college-bound population becomes poorer and more racially diverse.

Paul Reville, the state's education secretary, said that increasing state aid is "critically important" to broadening college access and that it is a priority of the Patrick administration as it seeks support for its education proposals. The state budget for this year, which the governor is expected to sign today, calls for a $3 million increase in financial aid over last year, the latest in a series of moderate yearly bumps. Overall, just 8 percent of Massachusetts higher education spending is devoted to financial aid, compared with 16 percent nationally, according to the latest surveys.

In response to cutbacks in state aid, many colleges are providing more financial aid out of their own budgets. For example, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst has increased its direct aid to students by 50 percent over the past five years, to $24.6 million, while the amount it receives from the state has stayed level at $7.4 million.

Jack M. Wilson, president of the University of Massachusetts, said that increasing financial aid, even more than curbing tuition increases, is the "key to affordability." He said he is confident the university now provides enough assistance so that even students of limited means can attend.

"It is true the state hasn't been able to, or seen fit to, invest much in that area, so we have," he said. "I want to tell every parent in the Commonwealth that if your child can do the work, we'll make sure they can afford to come."

Yet many educators are less optimistic. Two decades ago, a typical state grant covered 80 percent of college costs; now it covers 15 percent. And state and community colleges, which educate a disproportionate number of low-income and minority students, have little money to spend on financial aid.

"Unlike the private schools, the state schools don't have the institutional funding to supplement state and federal aid," said Todd Hughes, associate director of financial aid at MassBay Community College in Wellesley. "The demand outstrips the supply."

Sharp cuts to state aid over the course of the past decade have reduced the number of students who receive assistance, and how much they receive.

"It hasn't kept pace with tuition at all," said Cathy Kedski, associate director of financial aid at Bridgewater State College. "More students are applying for financial aid and there's less money to go around, so the average award goes down. Students end up having to make up the difference."

While efforts to make Massachusetts colleges more affordable have faltered in the past, many observers cited Governor Deval Patrick's proposal to make state community colleges free as a step in the right direction.

"That's a recognition that there is a problem," said Thomas D. Parker, interim president at the Institute for Higher Education Policy. "In the past, I don't think Massachusetts has even been aware there's an issue."