What Does the FAFSA Simplification Act Address
for Incarcerated Applicants?
Author(s): Gaskill, S., Castro, E. L., & Aguilar Padilla, E.
Publisher: Research Collaborative on Higher Education in Prison
Year: 2022
Description
The 1994 Crime Bill barred incarcerated students from receiving Pell Grants. In 2015,
the Second Chance
Pell Experiment began allowing a select number of institutions of higher education
to provide Pell Grants to eligible incarcerated students. The Research Collaborative
on Higher Education in Prison conducted at three-year study with participants at select
Second Chance Pell sites to learn about their experiences with implementation. Administrators,
program leaders, as well as currently and formerly incarcerated students and alumni
participating in our Exploring the Experiences of Participants in Second Chance Pell
study identified numerous challenges that they face in completing the Free Application
for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and accessing Pell Grants in their current form. The
challenges that study participants articulated are listed in the first column of the
chart below.