Fulfilling the Promise of Pell

In its latest report, The Education Trust examines graduation rates for Pell Grant vs. non-Pell Grant students. This is the first time this data has been compiled and made publicly available. Here are a couple top line takeaways:

• The national average institutional graduation gap between Pell students and their non-Pell peers was relatively small, only 5.7 percent;
• More than 11 Michigan colleges and universities have more than a 10 percent graduation gap between students receiving Pell grants, and their non-Pell peers;
• Several Michigan colleges and universities boast little or no gap between Pell grant recipients and non-Pell peers, including Ferris State University, Olivet College, and Western Michigan University.
• In spite of the small average gap within institutions, there is a large national gap — 14.2 percentage points. This national gap is largely due to the disproportionate number of Pell students who enroll at less selective institutions with abysmally low graduation rates for all students.

For more on the findings, data for each institution in the study, or the full data set visit www.EdTrust.org/PellGradRates