Report on Pell Grants emphasizes the importance of equal opportunity in higher education

Published: February 23, 2012

CLEMSON, S.C. — New findings suggest that issues related to the cost-effectiveness of the Pell Grant program may be secondary when compared to the mission and objectives of student financial aid assistance programs.

A recent report, titled “Attaining the American Dream: Racial Difference in the Effects of Pell Grants on Students’ Persistence and Educational Outcomes,” examines the role of Pell Grants on educational outcomes for African-American, Hispanic-American and white American college students. Data from this study reveal that African-American and Hispanic-American students in middle to high-income levels benefitted from the Pell Grant program, as did low-income students. White American students at the lowest income level also benefitted.

Lamont A. Flowers, executive director of the Charles H. Houston Center for the Study of the Black Experience in Education at Clemson University, conducted this descriptive report to bring attention to several important issues regarding policy reform and budget considerations for the Pell Grant program.

“This study clearly highlights the importance of Pell Grants in ensuring that all Americans have the opportunity to pursue higher education,” Flowers says.

In conclusion, the report advises that cost-saving strategies to reduce funding or limit the number of students who might benefit from this assistance should be avoided.

Flowers compiled the report as part of The Democratic Merit Project at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at The Ohio State University. The project aims to link diversity and equal opportunity with the democratic mission of higher education.

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The Charles H. Houston Center for the Study of the Black Experience in Education
The Charles H. Houston Center for the Study of the Black Experience in Education is located in the Eugene T. Moore School of Education at Clemson University. Established in 1988, it is the only research center housed at one of the nation's top research universities that is designed to disseminate empirical information and address issues pertaining to the educational experiences and outcomes of African Americans at all levels of the educational system throughout the United States. For more information about the Charles H. Houston Center’s research and programs, visit our website at http://www.clemson.edu/houston.