SU ranked fifth among top private institutions that make college affordable for low-income students

SU ranked fifth among top private institutions that make college affordable for low-income studentsMay 12, 2006Jaime Winne Alvarezjlwinne@syr.edu

According to a special report by The Chronicle of Higher Education, Syracuse University is among top private institutions, with endowments of $500 million or more, making college affordable for low-income students. The Chronicle conducted an analysis of federal Pell Grant data for the 2004-05 academic year to determine how the wealthiest public and private colleges perform. Syracuse ranks fifth among the top 59 private institutions with a high percentage of Pell Grant recipients–19.4 percent in the 2004-05 academic year.

The report in the May 12 issue is based on enrollment figures and Pell Grant data. It indicates that many elite colleges do a poor job of serving low-income students and that at a dozen of the nation’s wealthiest private institutions, Pell Grant recipients make up less than 10 percent of undergraduate enrollment.

“Syracuse is rightly cited as a place that has tried very hard to deliver on the reality of diversity–in a range of ways,” says David Smith, vice president of enrollment management. “While there certainly are imperfections in evaluating this issue via Pell Grants, the proportion of grant recipients is a ‘compass’ in understanding socio-economics at various institutions.”

The Chronicle used enrollment figures from the Department of Education and Pell Grant figures provided by the Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity in Higher Education for its analysis. Institutions were selected on the basis of endowment values as of June 30, 2004, as compiled by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.