TheFederalWork-StudyProgramandCalifornia
CommunityColleges
September2016
Summary
TheCaliforniaCommunityCollegesarethelargestsystemofhighereducationintheUnited
States serving approximately 2.2 million students across 113 campuses according to the
CaliforniaCommunityCollegesChancellor’sOffice.Thestate’scommunitycollegesprovide
multipleformsoffederalandstatefundedfinancialaid.Theformoffinancialaidfocused
oninthisresearchbriefisFederalWork-Study(FWS).AreviewofthehistoryofFWSwill
befollowedbydiscussionofFWSinCaliforniaCommunityColleges,evidenceofutilization
andimpactdataonstudentpersistenceandattainment,andimplicationsandnextsteps.
RecommendationsandNextSteps
Thisreportsfindsthateffortstoincreaseawarenessamongcommunitycollegestudentsof
thebenefitsofapplyingforFWSviatheFASFAshouldbemadeandsuggestsfurther
studyingFWStrendsanditsimpactonstudentsuccess.Specificallyitfindsthat:
1) Morein-stateempiricalresearchonwork-studyutilizationtrendsneedstobedone.
2) Resourcestoincreaseawarenessamongcommunitycollegestudentsregardingthe
benefitsoffillingouttheFAFSAcanimprovetheuseofFWSandotherformsof
financialaid.
3) Decisionmakingcapabilitywouldbeincreasedifstate-leveldataprovideda
comparisonofstudentsuccessbetweenthosewhoappliedforawardsandthose
whousedtheawards.
HistoryofFederalWork-Study
President Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society was a framework of domestic programs
proposed in 1964-1965 with the primary goal of eliminating poverty and racial injustice.
Themajorpolicyandspendingcategoriesaddressedbothurbanandruralpoverty,thearts,
health, and education. Arguably some of the most impactful policies stemming from the
Great Society were in public education. In K-12, it was the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965, which provided a significant amount of federal aid to public
education.ThiscornerstonepieceoflegislationwasthenfollowedbytheHigherEducation
Actof1965,whichincreasedfederalmoniesearmarkedforinstitutesofhighereducation.
The Higher Education Act also marked the transition from federally funded institutional
assistance to individual student aid through the three programs authorized by Title IV of
the Act: the Federal Perkins Loan Program, the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program, and
theFederalSupplementalEducationalOpportunityGrant.
Community College League of California
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The Federal Work-Study Program (FWS) was drafted to support the financial needs of
undergraduate students who require the income to defray the costs of their education as
well as to encourage FWS recipients to participate in community service activities that
benefittheirlocalareaandexpandthecommunity-work-servicealternatives.Additionally,
FWS was conceived to provide experiences in career-related work that requires a postsecondarydegreeandwouldincreasepostsecondaryeconomicearningspotential.Further,
FWSwasseenasavaluableapproachtodecreaserelianceongrantsandloans.UnderFWS,
student recipients may be employed on their college campus, by federal, state, or local
publicagencies,orbycertainnon-profitorfor-profitorganizations.Offcampusjobsmust
bedeemedtobeinthepublicinterestandacademicallyrelevanttothestudent’scourseof
study.
FactsatyourFingertips:
TheFederalWork-StudyProgram…
• isafederalformulagrantbasedonstudentneedwithnominimumormaximum
awardamountandmayincludeinternshipswhereastudentmayearnacademic
creditaswellasmonetarycompensation
• allowsupto10%oftheFWSfundsgrantedtoaninstitutiontobecarriedover
forexpenditurethenextfiscalyearatthediscretionoftheinstitution
• provides funds for part time employment for students qualifying for financial
assistance.Thesehourlywagesmaynotbelessthanthefederalminimumwage
• requiresCaliforniaCommunityCollegestoallocatenolessthan7%oftheirFWS
allocation to support students in community service jobs such as tutors for
elementaryschoolagechildrenwithatleastONEstudentemployedinaliteracy
basedproject.Thebenefittocommunityservicejobs,suchastutors,isthatthe
federalshareofFWSwagesmaybeashighasupto100%
• requires students to file a FAFSA to be eligible for work-study and, using a
statutory formula, federal work-study funds to the institution are based on the
aggregateneedofeligiblestudentsinattendancetheyearprior
ChangesandReauthorization.In1998,amendmentsweretargetedatthestatelevelsuchas
the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP),
which was authorized under the Higher Education Act but targeted towards preparing
middle and high school student for post-secondary success. By 2003, many of these
prioritiesweresettoexpire.Acoalitionofminoritygroups,knownasAllianceforEquityin
Higher Education, advocated for full government funding of minority education and
increased amounts for Pell Grants. These significant requests were denied. The actual
HigherEducationActwasnotreauthorizedin2003andextensionswerefileduntil2008.
Duringthe2008reauthorization,theCollegeCoastReductionandAccessAct(CCRA)was
signed into law. This increased the maximum Pell Grant award and addressed concerns
with problematic practices in the student aid lending industry. FWS also remained intact
andwasreauthorized.
Community College League of California
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In any review of the history of work-study in California Community Colleges, it is
significant to note that in fiscal year 1997-1998 campuses received $65 million in new
Proposition 98 funding. This establish a CalWORKS program on each community college
campus. This funding was combined with earlier state funding of Greater Avenues to
Independence(GAIN)of$16millionforatotalannualfundinglevelof$81million.These
work-study funds were targeted at assisting welfare recipient students to achieve longtermsufficiencythroughacollegeeducationandutilizingwork-studyfundsandservices.
However, the annual CalWORKS budget was reduced by 46% in fiscal year 2002-2003 to
$43millionandsimultaneouslyrequireda$1to$1matchfromlocaldistricts.Thisforceda
significantreductionofthistypeofwork-studyservicefrom2003-2006.Fromfiscalyear
2006-2007 through 2008-2009, California Community Colleges received a partial
restoration of work study funding from Proposition 98 funds totaling $8 million for
studentsoffamiliesreceivingwelfare.
FinancialAidandWork-StudyinCaliforniaCommunityColleges
FactsatyourFingertips:
Didyouknow?
• 62% of California’s college graduates report previous enrollment at a community
college. This ranks California 5th in the nation for community college enrollment for
thoseholdingadegreefromafour-yearinstitution
• California remains the state with the largest number of enrolled students that do not
receivefederalstudentloansatcommunitycolleges.(260,000students,13%)
• Approximately82%ofCaliforniacommunitycollegestudentsneedfinancialsupportto
coverthecostsoftuition,books,supplies,transportation,andhousing
• Only2%ofCaliforniacommunitycollegestudentshavetheirfinancialneedsmetwith
grants
• In order for a student to be eligible for work-study in California, they must apply for
federalfinancialaid
• Morethan20%ofundergraduatestudentsinCaliforniadonotfileaFAFSA
StatusandUtilizationofWork-StudyinCaliforniaCommunityColleges
In communications with the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office, it was
learned that the DataMart system can disaggregate the financial aid data by types of
financial aid, as well as by college and by special populations. This data can support the
identificationoffundingtrendsinwork-studyprogramsacrossthestate.SeeTable1below
retrievedfromhttp://datamart.cccco.edu/Services/FinAid_Summary.aspx
Table1
AnnualYear
2010-2011
TypeofAid
StudentCount
WorkStudyTotal
CaliforniaWork
Study
Community College League of California
AwardCount
AidAmount
11,489
22,171
$28,741,515
318
518
$574,215
3
2011-2012
2012-2013
2013-2014
2014-2015
Extended
Opportunity
Programsand
Services(EOPS)
WorkStudy
FederalWork
Study(FWS)
(FederalShare)
OtherWorkStudy
andmatchingfunds
WorkStudyTotal
CaliforniaWork
Study
EOPSWorkStudy
FWS(Federal
Share)
OtherWorkStudy
andmatchingfunds
WorkStudyTotal
CaliforniaWork
Study
EOPSWorkStudy
FWS(Federal
Share)
OtherWorkStudy
andmatchingfunds
WorkStudyTotal
CaliforniaWork
Study
EOPSWorkStudy
FWS(Federal
Share)
OtherWorkStudy
andmatchingfunds
WorkStudyTotal
CaliforniaWork
Study
EOPSWorkStudy
FWS(Federal
Share)
OtherWorkStudy
andmatchingfunds
392
730
$1,663,809
10,619
18,998
$24,832,911
1,170
11,975
1,925
22,610
$1,670,580
$29,186,459
428
256
662
440
$789,483
$1,052,056
10,976
19,085
$25,255,331
1,274
11,607
2,423
22,216
$2,089,589
$29,252,243
336
322
580
564
$673,898
$1,444,085
10,895
19,153
$25,614,675
974
11,486
1,919
21,893
$1,519,585
$28,728,928
607
355
1,138
625
$1,174,667
$1,170,756
10,343
17,993
$24,790,132
1,127
11,717
2,137
22,295
$1,593,373
$31,810,296
696
406
1,154
738
$979,520
$1,573,186
10,363
18,365
$26,751,595
1,144
2,038
$2,505,995
Thestatewidework-studydataaboveshowsthatfrom2010-2011to2014-2015(themost
recent year available) funding is increasing. This finding is in line with the reports from
California’sPostsecondaryEducationCommissionaboutstudentfinancialaid,bothfederal
and state, in general. Further analysis shows that students in California Community
Colleges receiving FWS remains relatively constant from 2010-2015 while students
receiving California Work Study funds is increasing annually; this may be worth further
analysis regarding the reasons for the increase and student awareness of the two
programs. In addition, while the current output shows the number of FWS awards given
andthenumberofstudentsreceivingtheFWSawardacrosstheentirestatesystem,itdoes
Community College League of California
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not allow for interpretation of how individual campuses, or regions of campuses, utilize
FWS funds. For example, are there campuses where the applicant numbers for FWS far
exceedtheawardstheyareabletogiveandaretherecampuseswherethereisadditional
FWS funding not utilized due to low applicant numbers? Do a great percentage of
applicantsreceiveFWSbothsemestersordocampusesvaryonhowawardsaregranted?
Further, the current DataMart analysis is unable to breakdown the system and campus
differentialsbetweenFWSplacementsinon-campusandoff-campusemploymentandany
discussion about the number of job placements that are within the field of study of the
applicantaswastheoriginalintentoftheHigherEducationAct.
While the funding data above provides a helpful overview in work-study trends, what
DataMart does not yet offer are qualitative analyses or regression studies that identify
causalitiesorcorrelationstostudentrecipientsuccess,persistence,oroutcomes.According
toconversationswiththepublicinformationofficerintheChancellor’office,theresearch
divisionpublishesaStudentSuccessScorecardandhasthecapacitytobegincreatingsuch
data files upon request. Identifying measures of success and then identifying causal or
correlativerelationshipstoFWSrecipientswouldidentifyfactorsthatmaybereplicatedto
increaseoutcomes.
Evidence of Impact of Work-Study Programs on Student Retention, Persistence, and
SuccessinCaliforniaCommunityColleges
While the Chancellor’s Office collects and disaggregates work-study funding data for the
state,eachCaliforniaCommunityCollege,aswellasspecialpopulations,gender,andethnic
background, it does not yet offer evidence of impact of financial aid on student success
measures. What DataMart also does not yet provide are campus comparison of FWS nor
regionalFWSsnapshotstoidentifytrends,patterns,andgaps.
Inresearchingthisdata,astudybytheCenterforLawandSocialPolicy(CLSP)wasfound
that tracked the education outcomes, employment rates, and earnings of participants in
California’sCalWORKswork-studywhowereenrolledinaCaliforniaCommunityColleges
between 1999-2004. It compared students receiving CalWORKs outcomes to those of all
studentsleavingCaliforniaCommunityCollegesinthesameperiod.Theauthorsfoundthat
CalWORKs work-study students were twice as likely to be employed full-time after
attending community college as they were before enrolling in college. Additionally,
earnings were higher for CalWORKS recipients after community college with those who
completed an associate degree having higher earnings than a vocational degree. CLSP
interviewed CalWORKs recipients and found that work-study combined with academic
advising by California Community Colleges were key factors in their academic success.
While this study provides insight into the economic impact of a California Community
College education for CalWORKS students, it does not separately study nor compare the
experienceofstudentsreceivingfederalwork-studyandtheirsuccess.
Further, in a recent national study by The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS),
theyfoundcommunitycollegestudentswithaccesstomultipleformsofaid,suchasworkstudy were more likely to graduate and transfer to four-year universities. This finding
provides a clear rationale for increasing the number of students in California Community
Community College League of California
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Collegeswhoaremadeawarethattoreceiveaid,suchaswork-study,theymustapplyfor
federal financial aid. Information about California Community Colleges and federal loans
may be an area of misinformation for students. The relationship between the number of
California Community Colleges that no longer offer federal loans has yet to be correlated
with a decrease in student applications for federal aid. However, in a conversation with
CenterfortheStudyofCommunityColleges,thereislikelyalogicallink.Studentsmaybe
unaware that despite not being able to receive a loan from their campus, they would
benefit by still applying for federal financial aid in order to be eligible for FWS. Further,
work-study funds are typically released to California Community Colleges in August and
are routinely exhausted within weeks. Students may not be aware that FAFSAs must be
filedpriortothestartoffallclassesinordertobeeligibleforworkstudyfundsacrossthe
academicyear.
Inanationalquantitativestudy,thatincludedCalifornia,oftheeffectoffederalaidonthe
persistence and attainment of community college students by Dowd and Coury, their
regression analysis showed that loans as a form of federal aid are observed to have a
negativeeffectonpersistence.Theauthorsconcludedthatborrowing,asopposedtoworkstudyandotherformsoffederalaid,mustreceivefurtherstudytocorrelateindebtedness
andthenegativeeffectonpersistence.
ImplicationsandNextSteps
Thediscussionofnextstepswillincludecollege-basedrecommendationssuchasapublic
informationcampaignforincreasingFWSapplicantsaswellasrecommendationsforfuture
research and empirical studies to develop a robust body of evidence regarding FWS,
utilization trends, and measures of student success. In this research it has become clear
that: 1. There is a lack of in-state empirical research on work-study utilization trends, 2.
There still seems to be a level of awareness building for California Community College
students demonstrating that they would benefit by filing a FAFSA regardless of intent to
accept aid, 3. California policymakers and officials would have increased decision making
ability if state funding data for community colleges also provided comparison data for
awardsappliedforandused.
According to a study released in August 2016 by the National Center for Education
Statistics (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2016/2016406.pdf), nearly 20% of undergraduate
students nationally did not apply for financial aid during the 2011-2012 academic year.
Theiranalysisaddstothegrowingbodyofevidencethatmanystudentswhowouldlikely
be eligible for federal aid, including FWS, do not fill out the free application for federal
student aid (FAFSA). Perhaps the most interesting data for administrators and
policymakers alike from this NCES data is the most common reason study participants
cited for not filing a FAFSA was a concern that they would not be eligible for aid, 44%,
followedcloselybythe43%ofstudentswhosaidtheybelievedtheycouldaffordcollege
without aid. This data combined with the suggestions by TICAS that the lack of federal
loans at California Community Colleges may discourage students from filing a FAFSA are
integral to creating an information campaign for students. So while policymakers are
workingtostreamlinetheFAFSA,itmaybethatapolicyfocusincombinationwithapublic
Community College League of California
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relations or public information campaign encouraging all students to simply apply is
advisableforincreasingfinancialaidapplicationsandutilizationofFWS.Incomparisonto
othersystemsofhighereducationinCalifornia,communitycollegesreceivethelowestperpupilfundingtostaffandoperatefinancialaidoffices.
However, simply increasing applications is not enough to add to the extant literature on
FWSandstudentpersistenceorattainmentinCaliforniaCommunityColleges.Basedonthe
DowdandCourystudyreferredtopreviously,furtherstudymustbegiventoresearching
California Community College students’ persistence and attainment when they receive
federal aid including work-study. Additionally, the authors, in conjunction with the
AmericanAssociationofCommunityColleges(AACC),recommendsthat,basedonanalysis
oftheirdata,borrowingincombinationwithparttimework-studyconstitutestheoptimal
financialplanbecauseitallowsforfull-timestudy.Thus,itwillbeimportanttoevaluatethe
effectsofwork-studyonthepersistenceandattainmentofcommunitycollegestudentsas
increases in tuition and living costs continue to shift the burden of a community college
education from the state to individuals. An important first step could be a collaborative
research relationship with the DataMart team inside the California Community Colleges
Chancellor’s Office to build out the features needed for more in depth analysis and
comparativedata.
Currentlythereisadearthofacademicresearchthatprovidesinformationontheeffectsof
Federal Work-Study programs on California Community College persistence and
attainmentstatistics.Fundingforsuchstudieswouldprovide,forexample,guidanceonthe
borrowing needs and patterns of California students as well as policy guidance on loan
limitsrelatedtocommunitycolleges.SincetheHigherEducationActwaspassedin1965,
the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program has provided funds to subsidize education by
providing hourly wages to student employees, however, it has never been empirically
studied directly to offer causality or correlations to measures of student success in
communitycollegessuchaspersistenceorattainmentandthiswouldbeapromisingline
ofresearchtoinformbothpolicymakersandpractitioners.
Finally,inadditiontoDowdandCoury’sresearchmodel,JudithScott-Clayton’sstudyfrom
2011offersamodelofquasi-experimentaldesignthatmayprovideaformatforCalifornia
researchers to follow. In her research design, Scott-Clayton uses instrumental variables
combinedwithadministrativeanddemographicdatafromWestVirginiatoidentifycausal
effects of FWS. This researcher’s study compared eligible and ineligible students across
state community colleges. Scott-Clayton’s work finds no evidence that FWS participation
improvesacademicoutcomesfromhersample.Althoughtheseresultsmustbeinterpreted
cautiously given limitations and contextual differences between state systems the study
representsonepossiblemodelforquasi-experimentaldesigntoexamineevidenceonthe
effectofFWSandstudentoutcomesinCaliforniaCommunityColleges.
Whilethereisampledataonfundingstreamsandfundingtotals,moreworkmustbedone
to link work-study programs to replicable and sustainable measures of student success
outcomesinCaliforniaCommunityColleges.
Community College League of California
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References
CaliforniaCommunityColleges,Chancellor’sOffice.(2010).CalWORKsProgram:reportto
theLegislature,Governor,LegislativeAnalyst,DepartmentofFinance,andtheState
DepartmentofSocialServices.Retrievedfromhttp://www.cccco.edu/
Cochrane,D.,Szabo-Kubitz,L.,andLaRocque,M.(June,2016).Statesofdenial:Where
CommunityCollegeStudentsLackAccesstoFederalLoans(IssueBriefNo.##).Retrieved
fromhttp://ticas.org/sites/default/files/pub_files/states_of_denial.pdf
Dowd,A.C.,&Coury,T.(2006).Theeffectofloansonthepersistenceandattainmentof
communitycollegestudents.ResearchinHigherEducation,47(1),33-62.
HigherEducationAct,42U.S.C.2751-2756b.AsAmendedThroughP.L.114-113(2015).
Retrievedfromhttp://www.legcounsel.house.gov
Mathur,A.,Reichle,J.,&Wisely,C.(2004).Fromjobstocareers:HowCaliforniaCommunity
CollegeCredentialsPayOffforWelfareParticipants.Washington,DC:CenterforLawand
SocialPolicy.
NationalStudentClearinghouseResearchCenter.(2015,March24).SnapshotReport:
ContributionofTwo-YearInstitutionstoFour-Completions,Herndon,Virginia.
Prince,D.,&Jenkins,D.(2005).Buildingpathwaystosuccessforlow-skilladultstudents:
LessonsforCommunityCollegePolicyandPracticefromaStatewideLongitudinalTracking
Study.”CommunityCollegeResearchCenter.
Scott-Clayton,J.(2011).Thecausaleffectoffederalwork-studyparticipation:QuasiExperimentalEvidencefromWestVirginia.EducationalEvaluationandPolicyAnalysis,
33(4),506-527.
doi:10.3102/0162373711421211
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