A Covenant With Students

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill set off something of a movement in October 2003 when it announced changes in its aid policies that would guarantee low-income students enough grant money that they could have their full costs covered – without borrowing.
While the most prestigious private institutions in the country (which also happen to be the wealthiest) have been improving their aid programs dramatically in recent years, Chapel Hill — by creating a program for those with family incomes up to 150 percent of the poverty level — started things moving for public universities. Since Chapel Hill announced its shift, similar programs or other major aid efforts have been announced by the Universities of Virginia, Michigan, Maryland and Nebraska, among others.
The first students who benefited from Carolina’s program enrolled in the fall semester — and the university has been undertaking a major research effort to see who they are and how the aid program makes a difference. The results so far suggest that the lowest income students are well prepared academically, and can succeed at top universities. And the economic analysis of these students shows just how stratified top public universities have become by income, and how out of reach those universities can become without ambitious efforts by universities.

Full Story: http://insidehighered.com/news/2005/04/05/covenant