Minding the gap: Scholarships help Justice seniors take the last step toward college

Justice High School Scholarship recipients from the Class of 2019.

By Jean King and Tara Rethore 

Hop on any Underground (subway) train in London and an announcer will tell you to “mind the gap” between the train and the platform. Here at home, the Justice High School Scholarship Fund (JHSSF) has been minding a different sort of gap – the one between financial aid awards and the real cost of college.

Closing that gap helps to make college dreams a reality for Justice High School seniors. For more than 15 years, JHSSF has awarded last-dollar scholarships totaling over $1.4 million. Last year alone, the fund provided over $160,000 in scholarships to members of the JHS Class of 2019.

That sounds (and is!) impressive, but what do those scholarships really mean for each recipient? Many students face unmet financial need when the combination of their college’s financial aid  package and the amount their family is expected to contribute, as determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), is less than the cost of attendance.

Schools use different tools to help students with financial need pay for college – quite frankly, with mixed degrees of success in making college affordable. In fact, JHSSF has found wide variation in the amount of financial need that remains unmet – even among Virginia’s public colleges and universities, which more than 45 percent of JHS Scholars attend.

For instance, the University of Virginia leverages the commonwealth’s Guaranteed Assistance Program. That program provides grants, supplemental scholarships, work-study, and need-based loans. According to one study, UVA is one of the more affordable, flagship schools. Nevertheless, even among accepted UVA students, gaps remain.

JHSSF’s last-dollar scholarship calculation includes a student’s expected family contribution (EFC), grants, loans, work-study, and summer employment, plus all other assistance provided by the school. Even when the financial gap seems relatively small – say, $1,000 – it can keep a student from attending college. That’s what makes JHSSF’s scholarship awards of between $500 and $6,000, often spread over three-years, so critical – and so meaningful.

Let’s walk through an example.

Roughly 20 percent of JHS Scholars enroll in Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), because it is one of the most affordable higher education options and is easily accessible to the JHSSF community. JHS Scholars often live at home to avoid dorm or apartment costs.

JHS Scholar Maria (not her real name) decided to attend NOVA and earn a nursing degree. Her family earns between $20,000 and $35,000. FAFSA calculated that her family had an EFC of $0, meaning they could not afford to contribute anything toward her annual tuition. That made Maria eligible to receive $6,195 in federal Pell grants.

The cost of NOVA tuition, books, and fees for 2019-2020 is $6,995. Maria’s total unmet was calculated to be $800 (which is typical for JHS students who attend NOVA, are eligible for in-state tuition, and have $0 EFC). JHSSF awarded Maria a total of $2,500 spread over three years. That amount closed the gap in funding. Furthermore, structuring the award over three years ($750 for each of two years at NOVA and $1,000 for a third year) granted Maria the real possibility of continuing her studies at a four-year college.

Of course, not every JHSSF scholarship recipient’s situation mirrors Maria’s and not every JHS Scholar attends NOVA. JHS Scholars matriculate at a range of private and public schools, both in and out-of-state. The cost of college, the available family resources, and subsequent financial need are as different as the students themselves.

Yet, it is a common and troubling reality that unmet need – without JHSSF support – might prevent Justice seniors like Maria from attending college. And that’s why the work of the fund and its partner organizations is so important for the JHS community. We are minding the gap at home, where a real difference can be made!

For more information about the Justice High School Scholarship Fund and how you can help, visit the JHSSF website or contact President James Schroll, [email protected]. Follow JHSSF on Facebook and Twitter, @JHSScholars.

Jean King is a Justice High School parent. Tara Rethore is a JHS parent and a member of the board of the JHSSF.