Billions in Federal Relief Funding Went Directly to Community College Students

Almost half of community college students received an emergency grant from their community college using federal relief funds in 2021, according to a new report from the Department of Education.

Community colleges in 2021 sent more than $4.5 billion in Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) money to students in the form of emergency grants, according to a Department of Education fact sheet, with 3.5 million students receiving an average of $1,290 in grants in that year alone.

A total of 6 million community college students received some form of direct financial support as part of HEERF since the start of 2021, according to a Department of Education press release. Community colleges also used roughly 11% of their institutional funds — $580 million — to provide additional emergency relief funding to students.

That funding was critical to keeping students in school: 94% of community colleges told the Department of Education that HEERF helped them keep students enrolled via financial support, and 88% said the funding helped keep students enrolled by providing them with computers and internet access.

More than half of community colleges, or 631 schools, used the federal relief funding to pay off unpaid student balances in 2021. Those schools spent a combined $540 million to discharge unpaid balances for students, according to the fact sheet.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona touted the HEERF spending as critical for historically underserved students.

“Today’s report makes clear that, for millions of college students, the financial lifelines delivered by President Biden through the American Rescue Plan’s Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund are what made it possible to stay enrolled and on track during the pandemic,” Cardona said in the release. “The positive impact of the Biden-Harris Administration’s investments cannot be overstated, especially for students from the communities hit hardest by the pandemic, including our communities of color and low-income urban and rural communities.”

Cardona said he heard from students about how colleges used the funding, “from forgiving debts, to addressing food and housing insecurity, to expanding mental health supports, and so much more.”

Colleges across the board sent out $19.5 billion in emergency financial aid grants to 12.7 million students in 2021, including 80% of Pell Grant recipients, according to the release. The vast majority of schools said HEERF funding allowed them to keep students enrolled who might’ve otherwise dropped out due to pandemic-related factors.

About three-quarters of schools said HEERF allowed them to keep student prices similar to pre-pandemic levels, and two-thirds of schools said the funding enabled them to keep faculty and staff at full salary levels, according to the release.

The funding was also critical for historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), minority-serving institutions (MSIs) such as Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs), and tribally controlled colleges and universities (TCCUs), according to the release.

Direct financial aid grants went to more than 8 million students at MSIs, 450,000 students at HBCUs, and 24,000 students at TCCUs, according to the release.

HEERF was the largest grant program in the history of higher education, BestColleges previously reported. Colleges received $77 billion in COVID-19 pandemic relief, with the last of that funding distributed last summer.

The Department of Education last spring urged colleges to use HEERF grants to support students’ mental health needs, BestColleges reported.

A May memo from the department read that “although HEERF grants are a one-time infusion of funds, initial investments in high-impact mental health projects can be made now, with ongoing support after initial success of these programs provided through philanthropic efforts, local partnerships, or other funding sources.”