For many community college students living on tight budgets, an increase in rent, car repair expenses, unanticipated textbook costs and even running out of bus fare to get to school can derail their college education. With the economy flailing, a new assessment of two pilot programs in which community colleges awarded aid for such emergencies provides tips for other colleges seeking to help retain students in financial straits. 

The study, “Helping Community College Students Cope with Financial Emergencies: Lessons from the Dreamkeepers and Angel Fund Emergency Financial Aid Programs,” by MDRC, an education and social policy research organization, evaluated two Lumina Foundation for Education-created programs that helped select community colleges create and administer three-year emergency aid pilot programs.

Eleven community colleges in Florida, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia, selected because they serve large numbers of low-income and minority students, participated in the Dreamkeepers program, administered by Scholarship America. The colleges included Broward County and Santa Fe community colleges. Twenty-six tribal colleges and universities in 10 states participated in the Angel Fund, administered by the American Indian College Fund.

Together, the colleges awarded more than $845,000 in emergency financial aid to more than 2,400 students in the first two years of the program, providing awards ranging from $11 to $2,286 and in most cases within one to five business days. Aid for housing and transportation were most frequently requested. For tribal college students, who have to travel long distances to get to these mostly rural institutions, transportation represents a significant barrier to degree completion.

Half of all community college students drop out before receiving a credential, and unexpected financial emergencies have played a role. The study couldn’t quantify the impact of emergency aid on retention, but did note aid recipients tended to re-enroll in a subsequent term at a rate comparable to the average retention rate at those institutions.