Bills backed by the Chamber that put more low-income and first-generation college students on the path to earning postsecondary credentials tied to workforce needs gained major traction this session. At the top of that list is the passage of House Bill 1449, which ensures that eligible low-income students will now be automatically enrolled in the state’s 21st Century Scholars program moving forward.
By paying for up to four years of postsecondary education/training paired with annual college-and career preparation expectations, the 21st Century Scholars program has emerged as one of Indiana’s most effective strategies in driving postsecondary attainment. The Scholars program has increased student postsecondary participation for low-income students, closed college completion achievement gaps at many campuses, lifted thousands of Hoosier families out of poverty and produced a positive return on investment many times over in terms of state economic impact and individual economic mobility.
That’s the good news. The bad news: less than half of eligible students enroll in the Scholars program as middle schoolers due to a lack of awareness and/or adequate support to do so. House Bill 1449 flips that dynamic by proactively notifying and enrolling eligible students in the program with the consent of their parents/guardians. The net result of this change will be thousands more Hoosiers in the state’s talent pipeline for the benefit of their own futures and Indiana’s economy.
A related longtime Chamber priority to make filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) a default expectation for high school seniors finally passed this year after falling short in past legislative sessions. Senate Bill 167 requires high school seniors to file the FAFSA – unless opted out by the student’s parent, school counselor or principal – in an effort to increase student access to the wide range of grants and scholarships available to pay for postsecondary education and training that has become essential in today’s talent-driven economy. In addition to being one of the most generous need-based financial aid-granting states in the country, Indiana also provides offerings – like the state’s Workforce Ready Grants – that are available to all Hoosier high school grads irrespective of family income. Simply stated, Indiana has guaranteed postsecondary pathways for all students, but FAFSA filing is critical to accessing these opportunities.
Over the past few years, a growing coalition of partners have joined the Chamber in advocating for this FAFSA policy, and the addition of compromise language that allows school administrators to opt students out of FAFSA filing after “at least two reasonable” notification attempts removed any remaining opposition. Indiana now joins eight other states, including Louisiana, Texas, Illinois, California, Alabama, Colorado, New Hampshire and Maryland, that have passed similar FAFSA policies to boost postsecondary participation and completion rates. Louisiana, the first state to adopt this policy, went from worst to first in the nation in FAFSA filing, which also contributed to improvements in other key metrics, including high school graduation, as well as college-going and completion rates.
Taken together, making the 21st Century Scholars and FAFSA filing an opt-out rather than an opt-in could well prove to be a gamechanger toward ensuring that every Hoosier, regardless of financial means, who has the aspiration and motivation to earn a postsecondary credential has the opportunity to do so.
