Rebuilding America’s Middle Class (RAMC), a coalition of community colleges, sent the following letter to Under Secretary James Kvaal, requesting additional funding for expanding Pell Grants to cover short-term courses as part of the FY 2024 President’s budget submission to Congress.

In the letter, RAMC Board President and President of Louisiana Community and Technical College System Monty Sullivan explains that, although community colleges have a greater percentage of part-time students, these institutions are crucial to providing accessible and affordable education and workforce training opportunities to a diverse student body, 44.6 percent of all African American undergraduates, 49.7 percent of all Hispanic undergraduates, and 48 percent of Native American undergraduates:

In recent years, several states have begun to embrace community colleges for their unique ability to solve challenges facing local labor markets. Thanks to their close alignment with area businesses and economic development leaders, community and technical colleges are best equipped to identify opportunities to create affordable, high-quality programs that can rapidly upskill adult workers and help fill area job openings.

However, the current Pell Grant structure does not allow funds to be used for academic programs that are shorter than 600 clock hours or 15 weeks in length, limiting students’ ability to get the cutting-edge training they need to immediately pursue career-advancing jobs. It’s a proven fact that community colleges can help accelerate real-world career opportunities for millions of Americans – but we must also not sacrifice quality for expedience.

We strongly urge the U.S. Department of Education to publicly and strongly support the expansion of Pell Grants to include short-term programs. The expansion of eligibility for Pell Grants to short-term programs recognizes the shifting relationship between higher education and work in today’s economy. Short-term credentials allow for flexible “on- and off-ramps” so that students gain skills valued by employers and gain access to well-paying jobs in middle-skilled occupations.

The letter provides examples to illustrate RAMC members’ concerns about the disparities that result from allocating federal funds based on full-time equivalency. Research confirms credential or certificate programs available through community colleges can have tangible value for families, raising median earnings of some completers to $45,000 compared to the average wages of $30,000 for individuals who only have a high school education. A report from Old Dominion University found individuals who completed short-term certificate programs at community colleges saw sustained annual wage gains post-certificate attainment, increasing their earnings immediately after

“Federal investment in such programs has the potential to yield substantial benefits to students and communities and ensures workers are not left behind. If students do not receive additional support from the Federal government for short-term courses, they will be cut off from quality opportunities, reducing access to postsecondary opportunities for our nation’s most vulnerable students,” Sullivan concludes in the letter.

To read the letter in full, click here.