Note: please note that this issue overview should (a) contain links to the issue briefs on this topic that are focused either the local, state, national, or global level, and (b) be neutrally presented, based on facts, and include footnotes for each of the items.  See the Research Guide and Information Sources to assist you. 

Goal Statement   one sentence that further defines the topic 

• To increase college access for first-generation students and students of color.

Policy Options / Model Programs   specific policies or program models, grouped by type, that are profiled 

• TRIO Program

• Model Program - Students Encouraging Further Education

Issue Briefs   issue briefs on this topic at the local, state, national, global level

• Access to Higher Education for First-Generation and Students of Color - USA

  • Access to Higher Education for First-Generation and Students of Color - Minnesota

Glossary of Terms   key words or phrases that the layperson needs to know to understand this issue 

• First Generation Students: Students whose parents had no more than a high school education. The students are the first one in their immediate family to attend college^[1]. The term “first-generation student” is debatable because people define it differently according to different context. Definitions for first generation students include students whose parents do not have a bachelors’ degree (but had either some college or had obtained a two-year college degree) and in other cases such as defining eligibility for the U.S. Department of Education’s TRIO programs, “first-generation” students are defined as students whose parents have never earned a bachelor’s degree but may have some postsecondary experience.”^[2]. In this context, first-generation students will be define as students who are the first one in their family to attend a postsecondary education with neither parents having more than a high school education.

• College Access: College access programs (CAPs) are nonprofit organizations designed to increase the number of students who pursue education beyond high school. The mission of these organizations is to open the doors to postsecondary education by providing financial counseling, last dollar scholarships, college visits, career guidance, tutoring, and test preparation courses.^[3]

• College Resource Centers: located in public libraries, malls, religious centers, and downtown storefronts, these centers provide a place where students and their parents can go to receive the help of trained advisors to identify and learn about higher education opportunities. Students' interests are matched with colleges and college programs. Financial aid is researched and guidance is provided about the complicated and time-consuming college admissions and financial aid processes.^[4]

• Achievement gap: the difference between how well low-income and minority children perform on standardized tests as compared with their peers. For many years, low-income and minority children have been falling behind their white peers in terms of academic achievement.^[5]

• Educational attainment: the highest level of schooling attended and completed.^[6]

• Financial aid: Grants, loans, assistantships, scholarships, fellowships, tuition waivers, tuition discounts, veteran's benefits, employer aid (tuition reimbursement), and other monies (other than from relatives/friends) provided to students to help them meet expenses. This includes Title IV subsidized and unsubsidized loans made directly to students.^[7]

• Status dropout rate: The status dropout rate is a cumulative rate that estimates the proportion of young adults who are dropouts, regardless of when they dropped out. The numerator of the status dropout rate for any given year is the number of young adults ages 16-24 who, as of October of that year, had not completed high school and were not currently enrolled. The denominator is the total number of 16- to 24-year-olds in October of that same year.Glossary, U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistic, http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/glossary/e.asp, Accessed 2 July 2009

Bibliography    

• Reaching out: MSU program aids foster care youth during college years 7/30/09

Footnotes

1. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Bridging the Gap: Academic Preparation and Postsecondary Success of First-Generation Students, http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2001/2001153.pdf ▲
2. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, First-Generation Students: Undergraduates Whose Parents Never Enrolled in Postsecondary Education, http://nces.ed.gov/pubs98/98082.pdf ▲
3. College Access Glossary, Building Blocks for College Access, http://www.ohiocan.org/ocanbb/AllAccess/ItemPage.aspx?groupid=2093&id=2095, Accessed 28 June 2009 ▲
4. College Access Glossary, Building Blocks for College Access, http://www.ohiocan.org/ocanbb/AllAccess/ItemPage.aspx?groupid=2093&id=2095, Accessed 28 June 2009 ▲
5. Glossary, U.S Department of Education, http://www.ed.gov/nclb/index/az/glossary.html, Accessed 28 June 2009. ▲
6. Glossary, U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistic, http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/glossary/e.asp, Accessed 2 July 2009. ▲
7. Glossary, U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistic, http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/glossary/e.asp, Accessed 2 July 2009 ▲