Philadelphia Scholars Research Base
Philadelphia Scholars was created in conjunction with the College Access Program to help high-need students from low-income neighborhoods persist through college by offering college scholarships that fill the gap between the cost to attend college and the family contribution.
Resource:
Thomas G. Mortenson, Financial Aid Packages and College Affordability for Men and Women Undergraduates 1990-2004.
Findings:
- Undergraduate students from the bottom half of the parental income distribution (make less than $62,240) face huge financial barriers to their enrollment. Furthermore, these barriers have grown between 1990 and 2004
- Lower-income students lack the expected family contribution (EFC) and grant assistance, and have loans, work campus jobs, and lack the resources to pay for college
Resource:
Investing in America's Future: The Case for Higher Education
Findings:
- By 2015, the traditional college-age population will grow by 16 percent, and 80% percent of the new students will be non-white; nearly half of the growth will be among Hispanic students.
- In the 1980-81 academic year, state and local governments provided half the revenue for public colleges and universities. By 1999-2000, only one-third of public institutions' revenues were provided by these same governments.
Resource:
The Lifetime Employment and Earnings Consequences of Dropping Out of High School in Philadelphia. Neeta P. Fogg, Paul E. Harrington, and Ishwar Khatiwada, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University. January 2009.
Findings:
- Average lifetime earnings for Philadelphians with a bachelor’s degree or higher were nearly 5 times as much as earnings for dropouts.
Resource:
The Tax and Transfer Fiscal Impacts of Dropping Out of High School in Philadelphia City and Suburbs. Neeta P. Fogg, Paul E. Harrington, and Ishwar Khatiwada, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University. January 2009.
Findings:
- Education level is directly correlated with employment rate, annual income, home value, and annual tax payments. Meanwhile, level of education is negatively correlated with annual cost of incarceration.
Resource:
“Pipeline” to College Graduation for First-time 9th Graders, 1999-2000, School District of Philadelphia Office of Accountability. January 2010.
Findings:
- Philadelphia lags behind national rates for college-going and completion.