Proposed change to Pell Grant rules would benefit students with disabilities

Proposed legislation introduced by Congressman Joe Morelle (D-Irondequoit) would provide Pell Grant flexibility for students with disabilities and eliminate what proponents see as barriers to earning a collegiate degree.

Pell Grant funding is the largest pool of financial resources available to college students. But eligibility for a full award requires a full course load, and many students with disabilities aren’t able to meet that requirement or need additional time to complete course work for graduation.

As a result, Pell Grant awards are scaled back based on course load while actual college expenses are not proportionately reduced, the legislation says.

“Nearly 20 percent of undergraduate students in colleges and universities have a disability, and unfortunately, many of these students do not go on to complete their degrees,” Morelle said in a news release. “We must do more to eliminate the roadblocks these students face and put college graduation within reach for students of all abilities.”

Allowing students to reduce their workload to manage their disability, while still being able to secure financial aid, would tear down systemic barriers preventing them from educational success, according to Morelle’s office.

“This is perhaps one reason why a staggering 25 percent of students with disabilities left after one year of college compared to an attrition rate of 14 percent among students without a disability,” Morelle said. He said the bill (H.R. 5739) “will help students stay in school, graduate, and pursue meaningful employment while building a more inclusive and equitable higher education system.”

The legislation, introduced last week in the House of Representatives, would lower the amount of credit hours required for Pell Grants for students with disabilities and also provide adjustments to award calculations and waivers for semester limits for those students.

“By instituting a commonsense flexibility that would allow students with disabilities to attend college at a pace with the greatest chances for success without having to see a reduction or even loss of Pell Grant funding will make a world of difference,” said Stephan Smith, executive director of the Association on Higher Education And Disability (AHEAD). “It is this small change that will amount to life changing opportunities for college students with disabilities.”

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