Education Beyond High School: Free or Not So Expensive for Native Americans

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1 Education Beyond High School: Free or Not So Expensive for Native Americans It is important for all young people to gain access to education beyond high school, especially Native Americans. Many Native American communities have jobs that require postsecondary education. Postsecondary means education after high school. Graduating from postsecondary institutions such as a trade school or a 2-year or 4-year college will strengthen the ability of Native American young people to earn more money to help their families and communities. As shown in Table 1, a person who continues his or her education after high school will likely make more money compared to a high school graduate. Salary rates will vary based on the state in which you live. Table 1. Salary comparisons based on level of education. High school graduate (including GED) $33,852 Some college (no degree) $37,804 Associate s degree (2-year college) $40,404 Bachelor s degree (4-year college) $57,616 Master s degree $69,108 Professional degree $89,128 Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014) Some students may believe that education beyond high school only means going to college. For students who do not want to go to college, completing a professional certificate in a job-specific program would be a better option. Vocational and trade schools offer specific career training in areas such as cosmetology and medical assisting. Table 2 shows the average income for various careers that require a certificate. Types of Financial Assistance The cost of tuition for education beyond high school is rising faster than the financial resources of most students and their families. Without financial assistance, most students will not be able to further their education after graduating high school. Various types of financial assistance are available to help Native American students who want to obtain education beyond high school. Table 2. Annual salaries of labor and service careers. Barber/cosmetologist $25,000 Electrician $49,800 Elevator installer and repairer $76,700 Home entertainment installer and repairer $36,000 Medical assistant $29,400 Medical records technician $34,160 Photographer $28,500 Plumbing/air-conditioning contractor $49,100 Railroad conductor and yard master $54,800 Skin care specialist $28,600 Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics ( ) Fellowships, grants, and scholarships are types of financial assistance a student receives that do not have to be repaid. Educational loans are provided through funding from institutions such as banks and state higher education lending sources, and students are expected to repay the loan at an agreed-upon interest rate. Loan repayment typically begins 6 months after the student graduates.

2 In addition, Native American tuition waivers are available from educational institutions in states such as Michigan, Minnesota, and North Dakota. However, these states require future students to be residents for at least 12 months. Families may want to consider relocation 1 to 2 years before applying. Check with each state for specific rules. Remember, if a Native American tuition waiver is offered, the student s tuition will likely be free. Calculating the Cost of Postsecondary Education As parents and students consider options for obtaining education beyond high school, many become discouraged by the cost of tuition. When parents and students calculate the cost of postsecondary education, it is often overestimated because the majority of students do not pay the total price (Schwartz & Scafidi, 2004). This means that, when the cost of postsecondary education is being considered, parents and students need to deduct financial assistance such as grants, scholarships, and fellowships (money that does not have to be repaid) from the total tuition price. For example, if the total cost of attending a university is $10,000 per semester and a student will receive $6,000 in financial assistance, then the actual cost for the student s education would be $4,000 per semester. Keep in mind that financial aid forms can be confusing. If a parent or student needs assistance completing the form, contact the financial aid office of the school to which you are applying. Some schools schedule specific dates and times for students to receive help completing forms with a counselor. In addition, some high school guidance counselors may help with completing forms and getting financial assistance. Contact the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid at for more information. Proof of Native American Ancestry Students must meet specific eligibility requirements to receive financial assistance. Most financial assistance for Native Americans requires students to be enrolled in a federally recognized tribe and to provide a Certificate of Indian Blood (CIB) from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The BIA will accept birth certificates of the student or the student s parents or grandparents. Students will be asked to prove their blood quantum (amount of Indian blood) to most funding sources. The average blood quantum for tribal membership ranges from one-eighth to one-fourth. Blood quantum levels are determined by each tribe, and some tribes may have levels lower than one-eighth. To obtain help with documenting Native American heritage, students can contact their tribal leader or the Regional BIA. Alternative documentation can include a written statement (affidavit) from a tribal official, birth or baptism records, and tribal numbers (Association on American Indian Affairs, 2015). The Dawes Indian Census Rolls can also be helpful. The American Indian College Fund was created in 1989 to provide educational opportunities for Native Americans at the 34 accredited tribal colleges and universities in the United States. Many of these schools are located close to Indian reservations. The AICF is the largest provider of scholarship money to Native Americans. Applications for these scholarships can be found at org. There are many resources on this website for students seeking education after high school. Students who are not from a federally recognized tribe can apply for the Allogan Slagle Memorial Scholarship, which is offered by the Association on American Indian Affairs. This scholarship is for $1,500, and students can apply every year. In addition, students from non-federally recognized tribes can obtain financial assistance from funding sources that provide scholarships to all minorities (Association on American Indian Affairs, 2015). Career Selection and Education Cost The type of career you select can affect how much your college education will cost. When choosing among various types of careers, you should look at the cost of an education. The average level of educational debt for college graduates in Mississippi (not just Native Americans) is about $28,000, which may threaten the financial well-being of many graduates (Bidwell, 2014). Many college graduates find their loan payments are so large that they must delay large purchases such as a new car or house (Izzo, 2014). A good example of this is the decision to become a teacher. Teachers are vital to society, but their salaries are typically low. Debt relief can help attract good teachers. Under the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, Section 104, the TEACH grant program provides up to $4,000 a year in grant aid to undergraduate and graduate students and those enrolled in a post-baccalaureate teacher credential program (National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, 2015). To qualify for a TEACH grant, students are required to work as full-time teachers for a minimum of 4 years. Students must complete their service to the TEACH grant within 8 years of obtaining an education degree. In addition, students must agree to teach in areas such as math, science, foreign languages, special education, developmental reading, or a subject designated as high need by the federal or state government or by a local education agency. The chief administrator of the 2

3 student s place of employment must provide the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators with proof of grant compliance each school year (National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, 2015). If you do not meet your TEACH obligation, your grant will be changed to a direct unsubsidized loan. With an unsubsidized loan, the student is responsible for the money borrowed and interest owed. However, a subsidized loan means that the government pays the interest while the student is in school, during an economic hardship such as unemployment, or during active military duty (Federal Student AID, 2015). The school you attend sets the amount you can borrow for both types of loans. Another teacher-specific program is the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program. Once a person has taught for 5 years in a row at certain schools or educational agencies, he or she can qualify for up to $17,500 of loan forgiveness for certain types of loans. Additionally, teachers serving in low-income schools, special education, or in a subject shortage area can apply for complete loan cancellation (discharge) of Federal Perkins Loans (Federal Student Aid, 2015). Locally, there is the Mississippi Teacher Loan Repayment (MTLR) program. The MTLR program pays up to $3,000 per year for a maximum of 4 years on qualifying undergraduate educational loans for each year of teaching in a critical geographical or subject area. Perkins loans and graduate-level loans do not qualify for loan forgiveness through the MTLR program (Mississippi Office of Financial Aid, 2015). People who choose to work in public service fields, such as a teacher or public defender, can qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Participants must have a qualifying repayment plan and can apply for loan forgiveness after making 120 payments toward loans (Federal Student Aid, 2015). Another option is income-driven repayment plans for federal student loans. To be eligible, your student loan debt must be higher than your annual income or be a significant portion of your annual income. Nurses can also qualify for loan repayment programs through Nurse Corps. For this program, you must work full-time in facilities such as public and educational hospitals and long-term care (Health Resources and Services Administration). There is also a Nursing Education Loan/Scholarship for Mississippi residents seeking a bachelor of science degree in nursing. Participants must work in Mississippi after graduation for at least 1 year. Up to $8,000 can be awarded to each participant who maintains a 2.5 GPA. However, participants must apply each year for the money (Rise Up Mississippi, 2015). Most loan forgiveness or cancellation programs require that the loans are federal instead of private educational 3 loans. Contact the offices that administer all of the programs mentioned to find out if your loans are eligible. Low-Income Grants for Non-Teachers The College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 also provides additional Pell Grant funding to assist lowincome students in paying postsecondary educational expenses. A Pell Grant, unlike a loan, does not have to be repaid. Pell Grants are usually awarded only to undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor s or professional degree. Pell Grants are considered a foundation of federal financial aid, to which aid from other federal and nonfederal sources might be added (The Institute for College Access and Success, 2015). Another source of money for which all Mississippi high school and college students can qualify is the Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant (MTAG). Qualifying depends on the student s family income or individual income. Students making good grades (2.5 GPA or higher) who also have a 15 or higher on the ACT can earn grants for college or technical school. By being a legal resident of the state of Mississippi for more than 1 year before applying, college freshmen and sophomores can earn $500 per academic year and college juniors and seniors can earn $1,000 per academic year (Rise Up Mississippi, 2015). In some Mississippi counties, community college tuition guarantee programs exist to pay for residents tuition at a local community college for up to four consecutive full-time (12 credit hours) semesters. Rise Up Mississippi s website has a list of program requirements as well as participating counties and community colleges. Please visit Graduate Debt-Free or Almost Debt-Free There are some colleges, such as Berea College and Alice Lloyd College, that offer students free tuition. Students at institutions such as these participate in workstudy programs and receive a combination of financial assistance (grants, loans, and scholarships). Other schools offer needs-based scholarships that cover between 60 and 100 percent of your tuition. These include Deep Springs College, Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Web Institute. Some colleges offer free tuition, but students may be responsible for fees that include books, health services, and room and board. You might be surprised that countries such as Finland, Germany, and Norway offer free tuition to international students (Noack, 2014). Students who attend international schools will be responsible for costs such as travel and room and board.

4 Organizing College Selection Materials Regardless of the program of study, there are ways to manage school expenses and not be burdened by debt for years after completing a program. The key to managing college expenses is to prepare early. Before your junior year of high school, start exploring colleges of interest. Also, look for scholarships for which you may be eligible. There is a college selection form at the end of this publication to help with organizing college selection materials. Avoiding College Planning Scams Please remember that you should never pay to receive information about financial aid or scholarships. Also, never provide a Social Security number or banking information to receive college planning information. Native American Education Resources American Indian College Fund 8333 Greenwood Blvd. Denver, CO scholarships@collegefund.org special_scholarships American Indian Graduate Center 4520 Montgomery Blvd., NE Suite 1-B Albuquerque, NM (800) or (505) Allogan-Slagle Scholarship Association of American Indian Affairs 2009 SD Highway 10, Suite B Sisseton, SD (605) Bureau of Indian Education 1849 C Street NW Mail Stop 4656 MIB Washington, DC (202) National Association of School Financial Aid Administrators 1101 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 1100 Washington, DC (202) Tribal Leader Directory Request BIA Office of Public Affairs (202) idc pdf U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Education 1849 C Street NW Washington, DC (202) IndianEducation/ U.S. Bureau Indian Affairs, Eastern Regional Office 545 Marriott Drive, Suite 700 Nashville, TN (615) index.htm Native American Tuition Waiver Ferris State University 1201 South State Street Big Rapids, MI (231) Programs/NativeAmerican.htm Fort Lewis College at Durango 1000 Rim Drive Durango, CO (877) University of Maine North American Indian Waiver and Scholarship Program (207) naps.umaine.edu/native-american-tuition-waiverchanges-2012/ 4

5 University of Michigan Native American Tuition Waver (734) University of Minnesota-Morris One Stop Student Services 600 East 4th Street, 105 Behmler Hall Morris, MN (320) onestop.morris.umn.edu/aid/scholarshipswaivers/ americanindiantuition/ University of North Dakota American Indian Student Services 315 Princeton, Stop 8274 Grand Forks, ND (701) List of colleges with tuition programs for Native American students: Financial Assistance Resources These are a few sites that students and their families can use to find more information about grants, scholarships, loan forgiveness, and so forth. Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning 3825 Ridgewood Road Jackson, MS Mississippi Office of Financial Aid or Rise Up MS Lacey Loftin, Special Projects Manager Grants Scholarships Student Loans/Loan Forgiveness studentloans.gov/mydirectloan/index.action Finland Germany Norway Education-system TEACH Grant 5

6 References Association on American Indian Affairs. (2015). Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved from Association on American Indian Affairs. (2015). Undergraduate Scholarships: Allogan Slagle Memorial Scholarships. Retrieved from Bidwell, A. (2014, November 13). Average student loan debt approaches $30,000. U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved from articles/2014/11/13/average-student-loan-debthits Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Edition. Retrieved from Federal Student Aid, an Office of the U.S. Department of Education. (2015). Deferment or Forbearance. Retrieved from Health Resources and Services Information. (2015). Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved from nursing/ Federal Student Aid. If you work full-time in a public service job, you may qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Retrieved from ed.gov/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/publicservice#qualifying-employment Izzo, P. (2014, May 16). Congratulations to class of 2014, most indebted ever. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from Mississippi Office of Financial AID. (2015). Application for Academic Year Retrieved from National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. (2007, September 7). Summary of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (H.R. 2669). Retrieved from publications/2007/g2669summary html Noack, R. (2014). 7 countries where Americans can study at universities, in English, for free (or almost free). Washington Post. Retrieved from wp/2014/10/29/7-countries-where-americans-canstudy-at-universities-in-english-for-free-or-almostfree/ Rise Up Mississippi. Financial Aid. (2015). Retrieved from Rise Up Mississippi. Nursing Education loan/scholarship BSN. (n.d.). Retrieved from state-aid/nelb Rise Up Mississippi. Mississippi Teacher Loan Repayment Program. (n.d.). Retrieved from state-aid/mtlr/ Schwartz, A. E., & Scafidi, B. (2004). What s happened to the price of college? Quality-adjusted net price indexes for four-year colleges. The Journal of Human Resources, 39 (3), Teacher Loan Forgiveness. (n.d.) Retrieved from studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans/forgivenesscancellation/teacher#am-i-a-highly The Institute for College Access and Success. College Cost Reduction and Access Act. (2015). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved from macro/032007/perinc/new03_001.htm Mississippi Teacher Loan Repayment Program. (n.d.). Retrieved from 6

7 EDUCATION BEYOND HIGH SCHOOL College Selection Form College/University: Required scores: ACT score SAT score GPA My scores: ACT score SAT score GPA Application deadline: Date sent: Transcripts sent: Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) (Need one type of documentation.) Issued by the Bureau of Indian Affairs Have all genealogy records DAWES Indian Census Roll Admissions Application Application fee $ Contact person: Phone number: Estimated College Cost Tuition: $ Meal plan: $ Housing: $ Parking pass: $ Books: $ Student health insurance: $ Total cost: $ Information on other side. 7

8 Financial Aid U.S. Department of Education: fafsa.gov Financial aid counselor: Phone number: FAFSA Checklist: o Your Social Security number o Your alien registration number (if you are not a U.S. citizen) o Your most recent federal income tax returns, W-2s, and other records of money earned (Note: You may be able to transfer your federal tax return information into your FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.) o Bank statements and records of investments (if applicable) o Records of untaxed income (if applicable) o An FSA ID to sign electronically Date FAFSA submitted: University Scholarships Keyword search: academic, freshman, department, incoming, international, military, transfer Private Scholarships Keyword search: Native American, minority, underrepresented women (name of major) ***Scholarship deadlines as early as December for August start dates of the next year.*** Example: December 2015 deadline to start school in fall of 2016 Publication 2900 (POD-09-15) By Katrina A. R. Akande, PhD, Assistant Professor and Extension Family Life Specialist, MSU Human Sciences; Robert H. Flashman, PhD, Extension Specialist for Family Resource Management, University of Kentucky; and Karen Crow, Graduate Student, MSU Human Sciences. Copyright 2015 by Mississippi State University. All rights reserved. This publication may be copied and distributed without alteration for nonprofit educational purposes provided that credit is given to the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Produced by Agricultural Communications. We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Extension Service of Mississippi State University, cooperating with U.S. Department of Agriculture. Published in furtherance of Acts of Congress, May 8 and June 30, GARY B. JACKSON, Director