The generational effects of education
Minnesota Private College Fund recipients include many first-generation students. See related story about the Meslow First Generation Scholarships
America may be the land of opportunity, but college attainment is still a form of social stratification that tends to perpetuate itself from one generation to the next. High school graduates whose parents have attended college are far more likely to attend college themselves than their classmates from non-college educated families.
Recent analysis of college enrollments from the Minnesota Office of Higher Education finds that one in four college students in state are “first-generation,” meaning neither of their parents attended college. Although a Star Tribune editorial from earlier this spring touted this figure as a positive sign of the expansion of educational opportunity, some demographic context might have led them to a different conclusion.
According to U.S. Census data, 40 percent of the adults included in the generation of parents of current Minnesota college students, never attended college. So if educational opportunity were equal, we would expect about the same percentage of students to come from non-college-educated parents. Minnesota’s first-generation college enrollment rate of 25 percent is actually quite low when compared to their parents’ generation. In fact, Minnesota students whose parents did not go on to college are only about half as likely to enroll in higher education as their classmates.
Moreover, Minnesota’s performance on this measure lags behind states such as California, Connecticut and Illinois where roughly one in three college students are first in their families to attend and where first generation students are almost equally as likely to enroll as students whose parents attended college themselves.
First-generation students are more likely to be lower income, to be less academically prepared and to have limited access to information about college than their peers. We can help these students enter higher education: Programs such as Admission Possible and two from TRiO — Educational Talent Search and Upward Bound — are designed to assist such students with academic preparation and the college search process. In the 2003-2004 school year, 11 TRiO projects served more than 2,400 students at our member schools. The results are stunning: Upward Bound students are four times more likely to earn an undergraduate degree than those students from similar backgrounds who did not participate in TRiO. Unfortunately, the TRiO programs in Minnesota are estimated to reach only one in 10 eligible students.
More first-generation students should be enrolling in Minnesota institutions; one in four is not a high enough share. Policymakers need to embrace that goal and make the necessary investments in programs that have been proven to help such students successfully prepare for and enter higher education.
Meslow scholarship completes first year
The Minnesota Private College Fund (MPCF) has responded to the growing need for support of first-generation college students by establishing two new scholarship funds. The Meslow First Generation Scholarship — now beginning its second year — is intended for promising first-generation students from families with annual incomes of less than $50,000. The Access and Equity (A&E) Scholarship Fund is MPCF’s newest offering, providing support for students of color, new Americans or first-generation students.
Starting in 2005-06, 17 freshmen (selected by financial aid officers at each of our 17 schools) received a $5,000 Meslow scholarship. Recipients must be the first in their families to attend college, U.S. citizens, maintain a minimum GPA of 2.5 and demonstrate involvement in campus and/or community activities. Returning Meslow scholars will have their scholarship renewed for a second year if they continue to meet scholarship criteria.
The Meslow First Generation Scholarship was established by John Meslow, former Minnesota Private College Council (MPCC) board member, and his wife, Karen. "As a former MPCC board member, I am well aware that we must continue to find ways to provide qualified students with financial access to our institutions," John Meslow said. "My wife, Karen, and I recognize that first generation students in particular, don't attend college in the numbers they might and often require special support. To launch the college careeers of talented first generation students, we were pleased to establish the Meslow First Generation Scholarship."
The Access & Equity Scholarship was established with lead gifts by Cub Foods and SUPERVALU. Fundraising for the A&E Scholarship continues with hopes of distributing the first scholarships in 2007. Anyone interested in supporting this fund should contact the Minnesota Private College Fund.