There are no universal student eligibility criteria. The institutional application explains that the state does not define for institutions how to determine which “students with greatest need” should be served; this is left to each institution, which must explain its approach in its proposal. Although award amounts to institutions are based on the share of students receiving Pell Grants, the guidance is explicit that funds are not restricted to Pell recipients.

The BRDS Grant Program is administered by the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). The Office of Sixty by 30 at MiLEAP offers the competitive grant opportunities, including BRDS, to Michigan’s public community colleges, Tribal colleges, and public universities.

The BRDS category totals approximately $8.5 million, with about $6.5 million awarded in the 2024 cycle and roughly $2 million in the 2025 cycle. The 2025 Barrier Removal—Direct to Students round was open only to colleges and universities that had not received a 2024 BRDS award. Award amounts are formula-based: colleges with a Pell-eligibility rate below the median (2021–22 data) are eligible for up to $65 per Pell-eligible degree-seeking student, and those above the median for up to $90, each plus a 10% administrative allowance capped at $30,000. Any institution whose formula amount would fall below $15,000 may request up to $15,000 and receives streamlined reporting. Award amounts range from $15,000 to $696,450, and funds must be spent within two years of receipt. A full table of maximum awards by institution is published by MiLEAP.

Individual student award amounts are set by each institution; MiLEAP does not impose per-student maximums, leaving disbursement design to colleges consistent with their approved proposals. As of early 2026, MiLEAP had awarded 60 competitive Student Success Grants across all six categories—including Barrier Removal—Direct to Students—to roughly 90% of Michigan’s public and Tribal colleges and universities, as part of the program’s more than $45 million in total funding. Because funds flow to institutions rather than directly to students, institution-level disbursement data are tracked locally and reported to MiLEAP; no statewide aggregate on individual student award amounts has been published as of this report.

BRDS funds can be used for a broad range of basic needs and emergency expenses that prevent students from completing their education, including physical and mental health copays, food pantry supplies, campus meals, books, parking and transportation, childcare, housing, food, textbooks, internet, other program supplies, and, should the student choose as part of a plan to persist and graduate, institutional debt cancellation. Institutions have discretion to define additional eligible categories consistent with the goal of removing life barriers to degree completion.

The state leaves it to each institution to determine how it targets and serves the students most likely to benefit; institutions apply for BRDS funds through MiLEAP’s EGrAMS grant portal. Whether students complete a formal application is an institutional decision, and there is no single statewide student application process.