Access Denied: The Growing Threat to Federal Financial Aid and Educational Equity

 There is a current ongoing war against education–especially against students of lower income backgrounds. The future of the Department of Education is up in the air, coming from a country that prides itself on its education system, is scary to think about. The Education Department (ED) has historically played a critical role in protecting civil rights, promoting equity, and providing opportunities for all students, including those in marginalized communities, students with disabilities, LGBTQ students, and multilingual learners (ACLU). The Trump Administration has single handley proven time and time again they are targeting these rights and erasing access to essential data collection crucial to protecting privacy laws and information to back policy changes for marginalized communities.This is important to ensure that students from different backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses are represented fairly through data and seeing where a lot of the shortfalls lie within our education system. Another major concern is the future of the pell grant and federal funding being cut and the pell grant being a risk of entering a deficit for the first time in a decade.

Where it starts: Childhood
The Trump administration has reportedly drafted a federal budget proposal that would eliminate the $12 billion Head Start program for early childhood education (ADP). This program gives over half a million low income students a primary education–something that about 60% of kids from my hometown directly benefited from to whom I see people becoming college graduates. Taking away funding from programs such as these lead to children starting school later and falling furthering behind to their counterparts with better education. Not only that but trying to eliminate the program all together and cutting billions of dollars in rental assistance funding will hit lower income families at the core where we’ll see these impacts on a generation of students facing the possibility of being homeless. 

Where it continues: Going to College
Federal cuts to the Pell Grant program are not just numbers on a budget sheet—they are direct attacks on the futures of millions of low-income students. According to the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) the % of FAFSA completion rates have still been lower than they previously were precovid and as of April 24, 2025 approximately 47.7% of the high school class of 2025 has completed the fafsa–yet this number doesn't give us an accurate picture as states like New Jersey require their students to fill out the fafsa to graduate.  With the uncertainty of the Pell grant and many students being forced to commit to institutions–it comes as no surprise that there might be a possibility to have less enrollment due to the lack of security in peoples financial aid packages. I personally benefit a ton from scholarships and grants through Stevens and New Jersey HESSA and it keeps me wondering if my financial aid package will change next year.
One of the main reasons it is so scary to see the changes happening to the Department of Education and the Pell Grant is the way it will discourage students of lower income backgrounds to pursue things like Study Abroad and general college enrollment since there’s usually programs that back those students on the Pell Grant. However, this is not the only “prize” and it does not nearly cover all the costs of college. A 2022 report by the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) showed that the purchasing power of the Pell Grant has drastically diminished over the years. While it once covered over 75% of the cost of attending a four-year public college, it now barely covers 30%. This significant increase in tuition within the last couple of decades has already made it difficult for students to attend college without taking on burdensome student loan debt. Further federal cuts would accelerate this trend, deterring college enrollment among those who simply cannot afford the rising costs and create a new market of loan sharks that prey upon students. We can also see the increase of “for profit” colleges or colleges with low graduation rates continue to target these students with false promises of job security after college simply because they do not know any better.
The Psychological Toll of Financial Uncertainty

Students from low-income families already face significant barriers to higher education. These include academic under-preparation, lack of access to college counseling, and competing responsibilities such as contributing to household income and working jobs. As someone who had to work two jobs in High School to start saving for college, trust me when you hit thirty hours at work studying for an exam sounds a lot less appealing than usual. Knowing that there’s less aid available—and that what remains won’t stretch far enough, the pell grant is projected to be in a shortfall. This can lead students to choose work over school, attend lower-quality institutions, or not attend college anyways after meeting the idea of “fast cash” of working in High School. 

Research by the Education Trust shows that when students perceive college as unaffordable, they are more likely to abandon their postsecondary goals. Pell Grants are one of the only forms of aid that do not require repayment, which makes them very appealing to students who cannot risk long-term debt (like myself lol).
Who am I to speak about this? 

I recently traveled to Washington, D.C. for the NCAN Leadership Summit. I had the opportunity to work with financial aid advocates working tirelessly to protect and expand access to higher education. Conversations at the summit centered around the urgent need to push back against policies under the Trump Administration that threaten to erase educational equity. One of NCAN’s top priorities is urging Congress to strengthen the Pell Grant program by securing $10 billion in mandatory spending, a move that would safeguard the grant’s future and help it keep pace with rising college costs. As more students become eligible for the pell grant, more money is needed to help the projected deficit and in all honesty $10 billion in mandatory spending is pennies in the grand scheme of things. In addition, NCAN is actively advocating against proposed cuts to other essential federal student aid programs, including Federal Work-Study, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG), TRIO, and GEAR UP—all of which play critical roles in supporting low-income and first-generation students. Maintaining continuous support and servicing for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is also a key focus, ensuring that students can navigate the financial aid process without unnecessary barriers. These initiatives reflect a broader commitment to educational justice and are essential for securing their future in America.
Some of the things I learned from this trip, spanning from the stories shared by fellow students and national policy advocates, I learned the idea that these issues are not abstract or distant. They are real, personal, and urgent!!! The battle for educational equity is being fought in the halls of Congress, in financial aid offices, and in the lives of every student struggling to make college a reality. Those countless nights students spend with their parents filling out the FAFSA unaware of the pending understaffing issues to come. The initiatives being pushed by NCAN aren’t just policy suggestions, they’re lifelines to student pathways to the middle class and just the “american dream.” When students have access to Pell Grants, Work-Study, TRIO, and reliable FAFSA servicing, they gain more than financial assistance—they gain hope, security, and a tangible path to success.
Without these supports, we’re at risk of letting an entire generation losing equal opportunity to go to college. No student should have to stress every single year about whether they can afford to stay in school or feel like college isn’t even worth trying for because the financial support just isn’t there. Education should be something everyone has a shot at, not something that’s only available to people who can afford it. When the government starts cutting back on these essential programs, it sends a message that budget cuts matter more than people’s futures. We put a price on education hidden from those who were once told from the American dream that they could have an education. 

I learned that there’s so much more than just a couple millions of dollars on the line: it’s people's right to an education despite their financial background, but I also left feeling hopeful. Because the truth is, when we speak up, get organized, and keep the pressure on our elected officials, real change can happen. It’s our turn to see how it impacts us directly. I mean yes Stevens is a private school and has some legroom, but we are in trouble. We will see the hardest couple months financially and if we don’t all collectively move to do something now we are mega screwed. The Pell Grant isn’t just a line item on a budget, it’s a right. A right that your background or income shouldn’t decide your future and we should all care what's happening in government right now. If we truly believe in the power of education, we need to keep fighting to make it accessible for everyone, because when we invest in students, we’re investing in the future of this country.