New Federal Grant Shuts Out Some
Community College Students
By Cassie M. Chew

Thousands of community and technical college students enrolled in certificate programs won’t be eligible for $790 million in new federal financial aid grants, and a group that represents those institutions is asking the U.S. Department of Education to rethink its policy.

The new Academic Competitiveness Grant program, approved by the U.S. Congress last winter, provides additional money to Pell Grant-eligible students who completed a high school curriculum deemed “rigorous” by the Education Department.

But only students enrolled in degree-granting programs would be eligible, under interim regulations the Education Department issued in July. The rules went into effect Aug. 2, but weren’t expected to be finalized until after the comment period ended on Aug. 17.

The American Association of Community Colleges says the department is misinterpreting Congress’ intent, and says the grants should also be available to students who are enrolled in certificate programs.

“Based on the law, we think that they are eligible,” says AACC spokesman David Baime, noting that certificate-seeking students are eligible for every other category of financial aid. “We want the Department of Education to recognize that these are valuable programs.”

The new rules would exclude the more than 250,000 students who earn certificates each year in various disciplines, Baime says. AACC represents more than 1,200 regionally accredited community, junior and technical colleges across the country. 

An Education Department spokeswoman said the department would not comment on the proposal until after the Aug. 17 deadline.

The grants were signed into law in February as part of the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005. The program is designed to encourage students to take more challenging high school courses, and eventually major in critical-need subjects including science, technology, engineering, math and specific foreign languages.