University Innovation Alliance Aims to Help Low-Income Students Earn a College Degree
The alliance of 11 large public research universities says that it will test and disseminate proven innovations in education so college and universities across the country can be more successful in retaining and graduating all students, including those from low-income families.
New Scholarship Program Looks to Help Auburn’s African American Students
The War Eagle Society, a group of Black alumni and faculty at Auburn University in Alabama, has established the War Eagle Society Endowment for PLUS Scholarships.
New Scholarship Program for Minority Students at Youngstown State University
Dr. Joan J. Boyd, professor emerita at Youngstown State University in Ohio, and her husband have established a scholarship fund at the university for underrepresented minority students interested in pursuing a career in health, medicine, or clinical laboratory science.
UNCF Receives $25 Million From Conservative Group
The grant will consist of $18.5 million that will be earmarked for 3,000 merit-based scholarships for African American undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students and $6.5 million to support the United Negro College Fund and its member institutions.
New Program Provides Significant Aid for Minority Ph.D. Students in STEM Fields
Using a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, 24 minority students at the University of Iowa will receive $40,000 scholarships over the next three years. The university will provide an additional $10,000 to the 24 students.
Nine African Americans Awarded Truman Scholarships
This year, 59 Truman scholars were selected from 655 candidates nominated by 294 colleges and universities. Of this year's 59 Truman Scholars, it appears that nine are African Americans.
Wake Forest University to Offer Graduate Opportunities in Business for Ron Brown Scholars
Under the agreement, one Ron Brown Scholar will receive a full tuition scholarship and a $10,000 stipend to enroll in the 10-month master in management program at Wake Forest.
Will the Federal Government Challenge Merit-Based College Scholarship Programs?
Many scholarship programs nationwide have minimum test score requirements that, while not discriminatory on their face, have the effect of disproportionately excluding large percentages of Black and other minority students.
North Carolina A&T State University Gets Permission to Enroll More Out-of-State Students
Enrolling more out-of-state students can help state universities financially. Tuition at North Carolina A&T State University for students from outside of North Carolina is about triple that paid by in-state students.
Racial Differences in Educational Funding for Doctoral Recipients
According to data on students who earned doctoral degrees in 2012, nearly 40 percent of African American doctoral recipients funded their education through their own resources compared to 21 percent of Whites.
Racial Differences in Educational Debt Levels for Doctoral Students
Blacks who earned doctorates in 2012 had an average of $54,132 in debt from educational loans. Whites who earned doctorates had average educational debts of $25,992.
Faculty Senate at Arkansas Baptist College Calls for Ouster of President
Arkansas Baptist College, the historically Black educational institution in Little Rock, has not been able to pay its faculty since November 1. The faculty is calling for the president to be fired.
After Campus Protests, the University of Cincinnati Boosts Diversity Efforts
When the University of Cincinnati's only African American dean resigned his post, students protested the lack of diversity on campus. The university has taken some steps to address the issue.
Chinese Government to Offer Hundreds of Scholarships to Black Students
The People's Republic of China will award 1,000 scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students at historically Black colleges and universities to study in China for periods ranging from three months to two years.
North Carolina Central Wants to Be a Guinea Pig for Pell Grant Reform
Chancellor Deborah Saunders-White has proposed that NCCU tryout a performance-based Pell Grant system where students would be given an incentive to complete their education in four years.
African American Entrepreneur Creates New Fellowships at Harvard
Sheila C. Johnson, the CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, has pledged to donate $5 million over five years to create fellowships for students who are dedicated to improving the lives of African Americans.
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Is Now Accepting Applicants for Its Newest Scholarships
The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation offers a wide range of generous scholarship programs for college and graduate students. Now the foundation is offering a new program for high-achieving, low-income high school seniors.
Lafayette College Mounts New Effort to Increase Student Diversity
Lafayette College, the highly rated liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania, has announced a new partnership agreement with The Opportunity Network that will offer admission and financial aid support to a group of academically gifted, low-income students from the New York City public schools.
An Endowed Scholarship Fund Honors Three Pioneering Emory Professors
The Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta has established an endowed scholarship program to provide financial aid for students in its Black Church Studies Program.
AccessUVA Reauthorized But Student Loans Are Now Part of the Mix
The board of visitors of the University of Virginia has reauthorized the AccessUVA financial aid program. But due to the rising cost and increased demand for financial aid, the university will now be including loans as part of the financial aid packages.
Education Department Takes Steps to Ease the PLUS Loan Crisis
A large number of historically Black colleges and universities have seen a significant drop in enrollments because many students and their families have been unable to secure PLUS loans from the federal government. A new appeals ruling may help alleviate the crisis.
The Successful First Cohort of the Rutgers Future Scholars Program
Of the 183 students who began in the program five years ago, 163 will enter college this fall. Of the 163 college-bound students, 98 will be attending Rutgers University on full scholarships.
Thurgood Marshall College Fund Joins Forces With the Opportunity Funding Corporation
The Thurgood Marshall College Fund, a group representing 47 publicly operated historically Black colleges and universities, has merged with the Opportunity Funding Corporation, an organization fostering entrepreneurship in the African American community.
Howard University Sees Drop in Hometown Enrollments
Howard University reports that a decade ago there were 142 District residents enrolled who received Tuition Assistance Grants of $2,500 from a federal government programs for students from Washington, D.C. This past year there were only 46.
Yale University Launches a New Outreach Effort Aimed at Low-Income Students
Research published earlier this year by Professor Caroline Hoxby of Stanford University found that many of the nation’s most talented minority students simply do not apply to our nation’s leading colleges and universities because they are unaware of the financial aid available to them.
The New Class of Scholars of the UNCF-Merck Science Initiative
The 2013 UNCF•MERCK Fellows in the biological sciences receive awards ranging from $25,000 for undergraduate scholarship recipients to $92,000 for recipients of postdoctoral fellowships.
Former Professor Endows Scholarship Fund for Music Students at Norfolk State University
Composer and educator Adolphus Hailstork has established an endowed scholarship fund at historically Black Norfolk State University in Virginia. The fund will support undergraduate music students at the university, where Hailstork taught from 1977 to 2000.
Stanford University Creates Fellowships for African MBA Students
Fellows will receive full tuition scholarships and must agree to return to Africa within two years of graduating from the Stanford business school and work for a business, government agency, or nonprofit organization for a least two consecutive years.
A Racial Gap in Debt Levels of Doctoral Students
Among those who studied in a STEM discipline, a quarter of all Black doctoral students had more than $30,000 in debt compared to 10 percent of Whites and Asians. In the social, behavioral, and economic sciences 58 percent of Black students had debts of $30,000 or more.
Thurgood Marshall College Fund Works With Army ROTC to Provide Scholarships in STEM Fields
Under the program, representatives of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund visited 452 high schools, community organizations, and other groups to provide information about opportunities in the Army's Reserve Officer Training Program.
At Many Colleges Financial Aid for Low-Income Students Is Lacking
The New American Foundation report found that for students from families with incomes below $30,000, two thirds of all private colleges and universities have a net price (costs after all financial aid is included) of at least $15,000.
Regent University Launches New Program to Further Increase Student Diversity
Under the new "Take 2 Through College" initiative, Regent University in Virginia Beach will partner with churches and community groups to mentor and sponsor Black and Latino students. Currently, African Americans make up about one quarter of the undergraduate student body.
Howard University Boosts Financial Aid for Students in Need
The university has added $600,000 to need-based financial aid programs for the current year. About 400 students, including some graduating seniors, will receive funds under the program.
Two African Americans Awarded Gilliam Fellowships
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has chosen nine students for its 2013 Gilliam Fellowships for Advanced Study. The students receive $46,500 per year, for up to four years, for doctoral studies in the life sciences. Two of nine fellows are African Americans.
University of California Davis Seeks to Increase Diversity in Wine and Food Sciences
The University of California at Davis is holding an international wine tasting event to raise money for scholarships for minority students at its Ronald Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science.
Morehouse College Joins the Stamps Family Charitable Foundation Scholarship Program
The foundation now has 33 educational institution partners and supports nearly 300 high-achieving students at these institutions with full-ride scholarships. Morehouse is the first HBCU to benefit from the Stamps scholarship program.
