U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $40 Million to Improve College Completion Rates for Underserved Students

The U.S. DepThe U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced today more than $40 million in grant awards to seven grantees to improve completion rates for underserved students. The grants are being provided under the Postsecondary Student Success Grant (PSSG) program, which aims to equitably improve postsecondary student outcomes, including retention, transfer, credit accumulation, and completion, by leveraging data and implementing, scaling, and rigorously evaluating evidence-based approaches.

“Across the country, colleges and universities are rejecting the old idea that weeding out students was a sign of quality, and instead they are taking responsibility for all of their students’ success,” said U.S. Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal. “These awards will not only help find new ways to help students graduate; they will help change expectations.”

Only 62% of students graduate within six years, including fewer than half of Black students, according to the most recent data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. However, the national rate has grown by 7 percentage points over the past decade, indicating that new approaches are helping hundreds of thousands more students earn college degrees.

Seven grantees are receiving awards through PSSG to fund evidence-based strategies that result in improved outcomes for underserved students. The funding is being awarded to three grantees that are in the early phase and four grantees in the mid-phase/expansion phase, based upon the amount of existing research validating their effectiveness in improving student postsecondary education outcomes.

The Department also published the final rule for the Postsecondary Student Success Grant program.  The rulemaking sets up priorities, requirements, definitions and selection criterion that could be used in future competitions for this funding.   

The Final Rule sets three tiers of evidence standards that can be used – from Demonstrates a Rationale/Promising to Moderate to Strong – to ensure that grantees’ projects are based on evidence and designed and implemented to have an impact on increasing student completion.  There is also a priority that aligns with the Department’s recognition of the important role college-to-career pathways and supports play in student success.

The rule requires grantees to submit an independent evaluation of the effectiveness of their project and targets the funds to the most under-resourced institutions by focusing eligibility on Title III and V institutions, or non-profits or states in partnership with such institutions. 

Finally, the rule sets a new selection criterion measuring the extent to which proposed projects use data for continuous improvement of student outcomes for underserved students.

A list of grantees can be found below:

Grantee	Amount of Grant	State	Description
California State University, Fresno Foundation	$7,959,963	CA	Proposes to develop and deliver an enhanced advising project, which will impact retention and completion.
Center for Collaborative Education	$8,000,000	MA	Proposes to work collaboratively with 5 community colleges to strategically address student success in teacher preparation programs by focusing on enhanced advisory mentoring with financial supports.
New York Institute of Technology	$2,763,820	NY	Proposes to supplement and enhance its existing advising and student success infrastructure for second and third-year underserved students with the ultimate goal of increasing persistence and graduation.
Research Foundation for The Suny - Albany	$3,998,852	NY	Proposes to provide personalized financial coaching that aligns with the student success infrastructure to position its diverse student population to thrive, persist, and graduate.
Portland State University (PSU)	$7,823,199	OR	Proposes facilitating the transfer pathway between two feeder colleges and PSU by providing early/proactive, wrap-around guidance and the removal of financial barriers to transfer students.
Jarvis Christian University	$3,418,794	TX	Proposes to serve under-resourced and underperforming currently enrolled students to ensure reenrollment, progression, completion, and employment.
The University of Texas at San Antonio	$7,299,868	TX	Proposes to refine and scale coaching, develop guided learning pathways and utilize system-level financial incentives to support first generation students.
Total	$41,264,496