November 29, 2022
The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice has announced that it is the recipient of a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to research and improve federal and state policy responses to student basic needs insecurity, which occurs when students in higher education struggle to maintain access to the food, housing, child care, health care, transportation, and other non-tuition resources and expenses that are essential for their success.
Over the next two years, The Hope Center will study and communicate the impact of recent federal policy changes on the design of state and institutional financial aid programs. For example, the FAFSA Simplification Act, $77 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funding for higher education, and federal student aid flexibilities under the CARES Act have brought about significant and rapid changes in federal policy that are, in turn, impacting how the federal government, states, and colleges support student basic needs. At a time when three in five students don’t have enough to eat or a safe place to live, these policy changes are essential to supporting students’ ability to succeed in higher education.
“We are witnessing historic policy changes at the federal level that will shape how financial aid works for college students for decades to come,” said The Hope Center’s Senior Director of Policy & Advocacy, Bryce McKibben. “We are thrilled to work with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to explore how institutions and all levels of government can meet this moment to make college prices and financial aid programs more transparent, more equitable, and more effective.”
