According to the Post-Secondary Education Financial Assistance Board’s annual report, Mississippi continued to subsidize in-state tuition at a higher rate for wealthy white students than it did for working-class students last school year. According to the report, Mississippi spent almost half its financial aid budget last year on programs that only benefit students whose parents can afford college. 20 percent of the 24,797 recipients of state aid in 2012-13 were from families earning less than $30,000 per year. Nearly half of the recipients were from families earning more than $75,000. The median household income in Mississippi is $45,000. The gap is even more stark when broken down by race. 73% of state aid recipients were white, and 20% were Black. These percentages are almost identical to the OSFA report from last year. For each state’s three financial assistance programs, the demographic breakdown remained the same. The HELP grant, which is the only state aid program to take into account need, remained the most racially inclusive. Most recipients of the Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (or MESG) were white students. The eligibility requirements of the programs are one reason that working-class students of color are often excluded from state financial aid. The Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant is the most popular aid award. It excludes low-income students who are eligible to the Pell Grant. HELP and MESG have very high ACT requirements in Mississippi. The average score for Mississippi is 20. For HELP, the minimum ACT score is 20 and for MESG it’s 29. The overall number of students who received state aid decreased by 1,525. MESG was the only program to see an increase in recipients. The Post-Secondary Board discussed possible reasons for the decline at its Thursday meeting. Jennifer Rogers, the Office of Student Financial Aid director, stated that she expected to see more recipients. Her office, which oversees all state aid programs, accepted ACT superscores in the last year to make it easier for students and their families to qualify. This could have been affected by COVID. She suggested that it might also be possible that the state has reached a limit on the number students eligible for financial aid programs. The OSFA budget was also addressed by the board. The agency had to request additional funding from the Legislature last session. This was the third consecutive year. Rogers stated that her office does not have to request deficit spending for the upcoming fiscal year. This could have an impact on the prospects of the Mississippi One Grant, a new financial aid program the board had proposed last year. The board created the One Grant to ensure that the program would remain within budget and avoid the need to ask the Legislature for additional dollars. This session has not yet seen the One Grant. It would only increase the existing disparities in Mississippi’s state funding. Jim Turcotte is the board chairman. He stated, “What I hear is that this session is very packed and it’s going to be difficult to address these and get it worked out and pass a bill.” “I believe there is an agreement that we must do something different, because the current programs are not sustainable over time,” said Turcotte.
Each state’s three financial assistance programs had the same demographic breakdown. The HELP grant, which is the only state aid program to take into account need, remained the most racially inclusive. Most recipients of the Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (or MESG) were white students. The eligibility requirements of the programs are one reason that working-class students of color are often excluded from state financial aid. The Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant is the most popular aid award. It excludes low-income students who are eligible to the Pell Grant. HELP and MESG have very high ACT requirements in Mississippi. The average score for Mississippi is 20. The minimum ACT score required for HELP and MESG is 20. The overall number of students who received state aid decreased by 1,525. MESG was the only program to see an increase in recipients. The Post-Secondary Board discussed possible reasons for the decline at its Thursday meeting. Jennifer Rogers, the Office of Student Financial Aid director, stated that she expected to see more recipients. Her office, which oversees all state aid programs, accepted ACT superscores in the last year to make it easier for students and their families to qualify. This could have been affected by COVID. She suggested that it might also be possible that the state has reached a limit on the number students eligible for financial aid programs. The OSFA budget was also addressed by the board. The agency had to request additional funding from the Legislature last session. This was the third consecutive year. Rogers stated that her office does not have to request deficit spending for the upcoming fiscal year. This could have an impact on the prospects of the Mississippi One Grant, a new financial aid program the board had proposed last year. The board created the One Grant to ensure that the program would remain within budget and avoid the need to ask the Legislature for additional dollars. This session has not yet seen the One Grant. It would only increase the existing disparities in Mississippi’s state funding. Jim Turcotte is the board chairman. He stated, “What I hear is that this session is very packed and it’s going to be difficult to address these and get it worked out and pass a bill.” “I believe there is an agreement that we must do something different, because the current programs are not sustainable over time. Get The Bell, our monthly education update. Register your email address to receive our free newsletter. We appreciate any amount that helps us continue producing high-quality journalism in Mississippi. According to the Mississippi Today Nonprofit Mississippi News, Mississippi continued to subside in-state tuition for wealthy white students at the expense working-class students of color last schoolyear, according to the Post-Secondary Education Financial Assistance Board’s annual report. According to the report, Mississippi spent almost half its financial aid budget last year on programs that only benefit students whose parents can afford college. 20 percent of the 24,797 recipients of state aid in 2012-13 were from families earning less than $30,000 per year. Nearly half of the recipients were from families earning more than $75,000. The median household income in Mississippi is $45,000. The gap is even more stark when broken down by race. 73% of state aid recipients were white, and 20% were Black. These percentages are almost identical to the OSFA report from last year. For each state’s three financial assistance programs, the demographic breakdown remained the same. The HELP grant, which is the only state aid program to take into account need, remained the most racially inclusive. Most recipients of the Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (or MESG) were white students. The eligibility requirements of the programs are one reason that working-class students of color are often excluded from state financial aid. The Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant is the most popular aid award. It excludes low-income students who are eligible to the Pell Grant. HELP and MESG have very high ACT requirements in Mississippi. The average score for Mississippi is 20. For HELP, the minimum ACT score is 20 and for MESG it’s 29. The overall number of students who received state aid decreased by 1,525. MESG was the only program to see an increase in recipients. The Post-Secondary Board discussed possible reasons for the decline at its Thursday meeting. Jennifer Rogers, the Office of Student Financial Aid director, stated that she expected to see more recipients. Her office, which oversees all state aid programs, accepted ACT superscores in the last year to make it easier for students and their families to qualify. This could have been affected by COVID. She suggested that it might also be possible that the state has reached a limit on the number students eligible for financial aid programs. The OSFA budget was also addressed by the board. The agency had to request additional funding from the Legislature last session. This was the third consecutive year. Rogers stated that her office does not have to request deficit spending for the upcoming fiscal year. This could have an impact on the prospects of the Mississippi One Grant, a new financial aid program the board had proposed last year. The board created the One Grant to ensure that the program would remain within budget and avoid the need to ask the Legislature for additional dollars. This session has not yet seen the One Grant. It would only increase the existing disparities in Mississippi’s state funding. Jim Turcotte is the board chairman. He stated, “What I hear is that this session is very full. It’s going to be difficult to address these and get it resolved and get a bill through.” “I believe there is an agreement that we must do something different, because the current programs are not sustainable over time,” said Turcotte.