Education Commons^™

Arizona Uncertainty: Arbitrary Barriers In Accessing Institutional Need-Based Financial Aid, Dee Hill-Zuganelli, Nolan L. Cabrera, Jeffrey F. Milem

Journal of Student Financial Aid

Established in 2008, the Arizona Assurance Scholars Program (AASP) channeled institutional need-based aid to in-state, low-income students. Rapidly growing costs prompted three changes to the AASP eligibility requirements in 2011. We examined how these new requirements—a 3.0 or higher high school grade point average and the submission of the Free Application of Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and admission paperwork by March 1—would affect the gender, racial, and socioeconomic composition of the program’s first three cohorts if they were in effect. Results revealed disproportionate impacts on racial and ethnic minorities and widened gender gaps. Male, Latina/o, and Native American students would …