Funded by state welfare dollars, two community colleges in the New Orleans area offered performance-based scholarships and enhanced counseling to low-income parents, as part of MDRC's Opening Doors demonstration. These early findings show the program had significant positive effects on academic achievement and rates of retention.
Because they have open admissions policies and relatively low tuition and fees, they are particularly important to the millions of adults who might lack preparation or otherwise be unable to afford college.
At the same time, longitudinal research suggests that nearly half of students who begin at community college do not obtain a degree or enroll in another college or university within six years.
In 1999-2000, the average community college student receiving a Pell Grant (the primary need-based financial aid program) had an unmet need of over $3,000, taking into account Pell and all other federal and state aid received.
This report presents the early results of a program in Louisiana designed to help low-income parents attending community college cover more of their expenses and also provide a financial incentive to make good progress.
The program, known as Opening Doors, operated at two New Orleans-area institutions --- Delgado Community College and Louisiana Technical College-West Jefferson --- in 2004-2005, before Hurricane Katrina devastated the region.
The colleges offered students a $1,000 scholarship for each of two semesters, or $2,000 total, if they maintained at least half-time enrollment and a 2.0 (or C) grade point average.
The scholarships were in addition to Pell Grants and any other financial aid for which students qualified and were paid in installments so that college counselors could verify that students stayed enrolled and passed their courses.
Random assignment ensured that the motivation levels and personal characteristics of students in both groups were equivalent at the start of the study.
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