Prorating Financial Aid to Support Reduced Course Load for Those with Disabilities
By Kayla Helm
Be it academic studies or professional development, the nature of a disability generally impacts the time people with disabilities need a lot to prepare for and carry out tasks and recover. Many tasks may be more time-consuming due to the nature of a disability, including the time taken to arrange and account for accommodations and recovery time needed between activities. To enable people with disabilities to be more successful in academic and professional pursuits, mitigating these factors with flexibility in course load and qualifications for federal financial aid can support the success of students with disabilities.
Courseload qualifications and financial aid eligibility need to be addressed in tandem to be effective. A reduced course load can offset the demand on time experienced by those with disabilities who struggle to balance school work, employment, and health due to their disability. This is often an inaccessible option due to a lack of awareness that this is an available accommodation and frequently confusing or inequitable campus policies. Taking a reduced course load often interferes with campus policies and students’ ability to access federal aid, making it inaccessible. For instance, despite the potential to benefit many students, the current use of reduced course load is statistically insignificant, indicating issues with availability and implementation. While disqualification from aid should not occur for utilizing accommodations such as reduced course load, it does occur on a regular basis.
Evaluation of Employment Statistics
The rate at which students with disabilities are self-identifying and accessing accommodations significantly drops off when transitioning to college from high school. Data points released by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) within the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES) report that 65 percent of students who previously indicated they had a disability responded that their disability was not present in college and only 37% of students who indicated they had a disability informed their college.
This raises two major issues that policymakers should be aware of. First, most disabilities are not temporary disabilities and do not disappear or suddenly become more manageable in college. The underlying reason that students are marking their disability as, no longer present at the time of transition, has more to do with distancing themselves from negative connotations and stigma around the disability label. The second issue is the thought process behind deciding not to disclose and forgoing accommodations, which, like the first, also has to do with distancing themselves from the negative perception of disability. There is a lack of incentive to access accommodations due to negative repercussions. Systemic barriers and microaggressions are often encountered when accessing or exercising accommodations. This is a contributing factor as to why students with disabilities are using less stigmatized resources at a higher rate, including academic services such as tutoring, study groups, visiting writing centers, and utilizing office hours. For instance, 61% of students who reported disability received help from a school office or department versus 51% of students who did not report a disability.
These supports are not fully sufficient as students with disabilities face higher dropout rates. Of those who dropped out of college, 34% have a job, 53% have a job but are looking for a better job, and 13% are unemployed. Those who completed college have a similar unemployment rate of 12% but indicate more gainful employment, with 49% having a job and 39% having a job but looking for a better job. Underemployment is an issue for both categories, but those who graduated have better outcomes.
While legislation around prorating FAFSA specifically has the most room for political movement and would be beneficial to many who need to manage their load due to disability it does not account for the large proportion of students with disabilities who are not being served as disabled. This multifaceted predicament will require multiple approaches on various fronts to support students’ needs with time and accommodations. It cannot be reduced to simply increasing disclosures or leveraging enough support to broaden the policy to include all students immediately.
Need for Standardization and Transparency
Students with disabilities seeking to gain work experience during college often require more flexibility and additional time in their course schedule to reasonably benefit from working and maintain good academic standing and progress. Making reduced course load more accessible is an important factor in helping students gain early work experience and start on a trajectory to gainful employment.
“I struggle to manage my time juggling a lot of classes, both with having a learning disability, ADHD, and chronic illnesses. Last semester, I needed to take a lighter course load, and my school allowed me to take 9 hours and still stay on campus. I was only able to do this because I don’t receive any financial aid, and I think it’s unfair to reserve this accommodation for only those whose parents can afford their tuition.” – Sierra, Young Adult Leadership Council Alum
“I have pretty much been told I have to take a minimum of 12 hours or I wouldn’t get my full financial aid package.” – Jacklyn, Young Adult Leadership Council Alum
Students with a reduced course load due to a disability can appeal their financial aid. A lack of awareness and implementation of current policies makes it difficult for students with disabilities to exercise their rights and find protection under the law. Universities need to be aware of this and accountable for ensuring students are aware of this option and supported through this process. While this predominantly falls on the financial aid office to fulfill, campus disability offices need to be instrumental in informing students of their rights and providing the proper accommodations. The disability office should play a role in supporting students with any aid appeals when needed. The nature of many disabilities can make such tasks difficult, especially when the institution does not understand the policies well and the process becomes convoluted.
Other accommodations and their accompanying policy implications also pose challenges for disabled students. Students need to know what accommodations they are entitled to under the law, the compliance level of colleges and universities, and any additional factors for accessibility at any given institution. The Department of Education could publish a list of mandated and recommended accommodations or require institutions of higher education to make their list available, mandating the inclusion of necessary accommodations.
It is also recommended the U.S. Department of Education track the number of applicants, admits, and outcomes among the various colleges and universities and keep data on what accommodations students are accessing and their subsequent educational and employment outcomes. Students with disabilities often face discrimination as many institutions are unwilling to invest in the needed training and resources to provide disability-accessible curricula, services, and policies. Many universities have been caught buying confidential disability data from testing agencies to discriminate against students with disabilities in admissions. While students with disabilities are just as smart and deserving of a college education, colleges are unaccustomed to educating them. There is a lack of incentive to take risks in admitting disabled students and a lack of incentive to cultivate disability-friendly campus climates. Monitoring admissions, access to accommodation, equity practices, and outcomes is essential to the advancement of the disability population.
Federal Student Aid Eligibility
Federal Student Aid limits financial aid at 12 terms for the Federal Pell Grant while eligibility requires enrollment as a “regular student” making satisfactory academic progress. For students with disabilities, this pace may be impractical and make accessing federal student aid inaccessible. A student with a disability may be committing an effort that reflects that of a full-time student but with an adjusted course load to meet their capacity. This may push students past the designated 12 terms of eligibility and drop them behind the pace required to be deemed as making satisfactory academic progress as a full-time student. This would make them ineligible to qualify for federal financial aid as full-time students. While some universities may provide the opportunity for students to switch their enrollment to part-time and qualify that way, this could further disqualify them from opportunities reserved for full-time students such as; scholarships, student housing, graduate assistantships, work studies, research grants, and more.
Higher Education Grant Flexibility Act and Pell Grant Flexibility Act
The proposals in the Higher Education Grant Flexibility Act and Pell Grant Flexibility Act would consider those qualifying as disabled under the ADA or section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act with reduced course load as an approved accommodation to be considered full-time for purposes of determining the amount of Federal Pell Grant, a student is entitled if they are enrolled with a reduced course load or with least five credit. The existing bills will target disability directly to increase access to federal student aid if executed. This would address concerns regarding losing federal financial aid due to federal student aid policies. The possibility of legislating through the bills above or ones of a similar nature should remain dynamic and be pursued as the opportunity presents itself.
Other Considerations
It is recommended that institutions that have reduced course load as a regular practice be examined and mentored in piloting the recommendations mentioned above.
A follow-up bill to prorate federal student aid for only those with disabilities could be to prorate federal aid course load eligibility status for all students regardless of disability. Having a policy that is standard practice for all students would eliminate some of the complications that occur by being disability specific, such as microaggressions and internal challenges, and integrate policies that are not regularly implemented. It would also mitigate such problems as formal identification of disability or low self-identification rates in the changing educational landscape where part-time and online schooling would benefit nontraditional college students.
* The National Center for Learning Disabilities provides a platform for its Young Adult Leadership Council members and alumni to share their experiences and perspectives. The views expressed in these pieces are their own and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of NCLD. These writings are intended to share personal insights and should not be cited as official positions or credible sources for policy or research purposes.