USA Funds President and CEO Describes Initiatives to Assure Higher-Education Access
Nearly three years ago, the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance released a report that raised the very real prospect of a higher-education-access crisis during the coming decade. A follow-up report disclosed that an estimated 2 million academically qualified students would be denied the benefits of higher education during the coming decade solely because they lack the finances to pay college expenses.
Since its inception in 1960, USA Funds® has pursued a mission that was broader than simply the administration of loans for higher education. In addition to the $9.6 billion in Stafford and PLUS loans that USA Funds annually guarantees, USA Funds also makes a significant investment in other initiatives that help prepare students and families for higher education, promote access to postsecondary education and encourage students to successfully complete their studies and repay the loans that helped finance their education. Here is a sample of some of the recent initiatives:
Scholarships. Applications now are available for USA Funds Access to Education Scholarships® and USA Funds Hawaii Silver Anniversary ScholarshipsTM for the 2004-2005 academic year. USA Funds will award a total of $3.15 million in new scholarships. The application deadline for both programs is March 15, 2004.
USA Funds also will support $1,500 scholarships to graduating seniors from high schools in communities where USA Funds' staff members live and work. In addition to these scholarship awards, USA Funds has, for the third consecutive year, awarded a total of $300,000 to three national scholarship organizations to help minority students pay higher-education expenses.
To generate awareness of the need for additional private-sector support for need-based scholarships, USA Funds will, for a third year, serve as a national sponsor of National Scholarship Month in May. USA Funds also has made increased federal support of Pell grants the top priority in its proposals for reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.
USA Funds Unlock the Future®. First offered in spring 2003, USA Funds' early-awareness program for middle-school students and their parents now is in use by some 140 educational institutions, community agencies and faith-based organizations.
Scholarship Alert. USA Funds recently announced a grant of nearly $119,000 to the Council for Opportunity in Education to help low-income students pursue scholarships for higher education.
Higher Learning for Dropouts and At-Risk Students. USA Funds helped launch the first charter high school in Indianapolis. The school offers at-risk students and dropouts a second chance to earn high-school diplomas.
USA Parents. USA Funds provided a grant to start a program that encourages parental involvement and strong family structures to promote student success.
During the past fiscal year, USA Funds committed approximately $14.7 million to these and similar programs and services that help deserving students pursue higher education. This investment is part of USA Funds' overall commitment to higher education. During this new year, we will continue to work with like-minded organizations to change "access denied" into "access assured."