The Importance of College Access and Equitable Funding
As a first-generation American and college graduate, I deeply understand the significance of a college education. My parents and I believed that education would be transformative, opening doors to career opportunities and community connections. While alternative paths to success exist, many students, like myself, lack the privilege to take such risks. A college education not only provided me with academic knowledge but also facilitated encounters with scholars, politicians, and lifelong friends.
Equitable funding and accessibility to higher education are essential to ensuring that students can fully benefit from opportunities on their campus. This includes access to mental health services, tuition assistance, fully funded academic programs, and other areas supported by this model. Financial challenges were a major obstacle in pursuing my degree. Like countless students, I juggled multiple jobs and internships to sustain myself throughout my education. In order to maintain some of my scholarships, I also had to be involved in extracurricular activities. As a first-generation and low-income student, I often struggled to navigate financial matters, especially when school expenses were not my only financial concern.
During my final year, I experienced an unforeseen accident that temporarily disabled me and caused significant trauma. Despite this, I continued to work multiple jobs during the summer to pay for school the following year. Tuition became a daunting concern while I was also trying to heal. I sought support with accessibility accommodations, mental health resources, and tuition assistance, leveraging my campus connections. However, not all students know where to seek such guidance, and seeking assistance is often met with discussions of limited funding and perceived inability to help.
Reflecting on my experience made me acutely aware of the systemic barriers to educational equity. Every student has unique resource needs, but colleges prioritize available resources, leaving many students underserved. Equitable funding can dismantle these barriers and ensure educational equity by providing sufficient resources to meet student needs. This funding would enable colleges to foster partnerships with community organizations, lift burdens placed on students, and ensure that no department or service gets left behind.
Lawmakers may express concerns about the allocation and accountability of funds. However, equitable funding ensures accountability while serving as a catalyst for institutional progress, particularly in supporting first-generation, low-income, or students of color who often face challenges in retention efforts. For universities to fulfill their mission, they require sufficient resources. I advocate for an Equitable Funding Formula that ensures all students have their needs met and the support necessary to achieve a college degree.
Samantha Sancen, 21, Quad Cities native in IL. St. Ambrose University graduate with a degree in Political Science and Theology.
Equitable Education: Paving Paths for First-Generation Success
As a first-generation student, college has been invaluable for both me and my family. Initially, it symbolized the culmination of my parents’ sacrifices, ensuring their hard work didn’t go to waste. Over time, however, college has evolved into a gateway to myriad opportunities for personal and professional growth. It has empowered me to explore my identity and aspirations freely, allowing me to chart a career path based on passion rather than necessity.
For my family, higher education represented the American dream—a hope for future generations to break free from the cycle of paycheck-to-paycheck living. Sadly, statistics from the Lumina Foundation show that only 25.8% of Latino adults in Illinois had earned an associate degree or higher by 2021. Thus, my pursuit of higher education serves as a beacon of hope and representation for those who have never had such opportunities.
Leaving behind my sick mother, as her only child, posed a significant challenge when I embarked on my college journey. Adjusting to life in a new city, finding employment to afford class materials like textbooks, and managing my academic responsibilities only compounded the difficulty. Thankfully, scholarships covered most of my tuition, easing some financial strain.
Observing the struggles endured by many students striving to balance financial constraints with academic performance fills me with gratitude for the assistance I received. However, despite financial aid covering my tuition, I still had to take out a loan to cover room and meal plan expenses. Becoming a Resident Assistant (RA) helped offset these costs, but such opportunities are scarce, leaving many first-generation, low-income students of color like me with limited options to complete their degrees.
Improved funding mechanisms based on equity would greatly benefit individuals from diverse backgrounds, unlocking doors previously closed to them. With equitable funding for all public universities in the state, individuals could access quality education and pursue career paths aligned with their dreams at schools near their homes.
Unfortunately, minorities and marginalized communities bear the brunt of financial hurdles to higher education, often relying on scarce scholarships that may not always be accessible. There is a pressing need for a more accessible funding system that caters to individual circumstances. A tailored approach, considering each student’s needs and conditions, could form the basis of a fairer funding system, allocating assistance based on evolving requirements rather than rigid criteria.
Such support would acknowledge the unique challenges these students face in pursuing higher education. By removing financial barriers, more individuals can pursue their educational aspirations and career goals. This, in turn, fosters a workforce driven by passion and dedication, enriching the state’s economy and society as a whole.
Scarlett Garcia (they/them) is a 22-year-old student from Chicago, Illinois and currently attends the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where they are majoring in sociology with a double minor in criminology, law, and society, and social work.
Equity in Higher Education
Growing up, my parents instilled in me the importance of education, not only for its inherent power but also for its potential to significantly improve our family’s quality of life. As a student, attending an affordable university was crucial to me because accumulating debt would have been a setback in my efforts to provide a better life for my family.
The University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) stood out as an affordable option that also offered a learning environment rich in cultural competency. From professors to peers, there was a strong emphasis on addressing and accommodating cultural differences. However, as I progressed through my academic journey, I encountered several gaps in cultural competency and resources at UIC. While the university provided some supportive services for first-generation immigrant students like myself, these resources were often limited in their scope and capacity to support a diverse student body.
One significant area of concern was food insecurity, particularly for students with dietary restrictions due to cultural or personal beliefs. Food halls often lacked nutrient-dense options suitable for diets such as vegetarian, halal, or vegan. Proper nutrition is essential for academic performance, and no young adult should face food insecurity or nutritional deficiencies due to inadequate resources and accommodations at the university.
Unfortunately, addressing these challenges requires equitable funding, which can be difficult for universities to secure. While I am grateful for UIC’s efforts to expand cultural services, I am aware that many young adults attending smaller universities or those located outside urban centers face even greater gaps in cultural competency and accommodations.
Obtaining my degree has positively impacted me in numerous ways, equipping me with skills relevant to the workforce and competency in various areas of healthcare and research. I am now able to play a role in improving the quality of life within our communities and have access to post-graduate job opportunities within the university.
By sharing my story, I hope to underscore the transformative impact of access to higher education and the positive outcomes it can bring to individuals’ futures. I firmly believe that every young adult in Illinois should have access to a high-quality education, along with supportive services that allow them to focus solely on being a student, regardless of the college they choose to attend, without sacrificing their quality of life.
Investing in a strong and equitable funding system can enhance the quality of education and opportunities for individuals from diverse backgrounds. Ultimately, this will contribute to building a more inclusive society by breaking down barriers and obstacles to higher education access for all.
Sema Patel, is a recent graduate from the university of Illinois at Chicago. She is the eldest daughter of two immigrant parents and the first in her family to receive a higher education.
A Vital Perspective
I come from a low-income, underrepresented, and violence-stricken community on the Southside of Chicago. Like many youth in my community, I saw college as an opportunity to escape daily dangers and traumatic experiences. It was a chance to access adequate resources, support, and facilities that were lacking in our grade school, high school, and local community. I viewed college as a means to gain knowledge and tools to better the conditions we once experienced back in our neighborhoods.
However, as I began my search for the best state universities to explore these opportunities, I realized that my options were far more limited than I had been led to believe. It wasn’t due to a lack of academic merit on my part, but rather because of stark differences in the quality and quantity of resources available across universities.
While some universities offer appealing cultures, staff, and environments, they lack the necessary funding for academic services, resources, and systems crucial for success in higher education. Despite programs like the SOAR program and the Haley Scholarship at my alma mater, I know many other students who require even more support.
Universities could do a better job of providing additional resources, but this can only happen when we equitably fund our institutions and the resources they provide. The current funding strategy creates a situation where multiple students compete for the expansive resources offered by one or two public colleges while many other public colleges in Illinois lack the funding to offer similar opportunities.
I firmly believe that an equitable funding formula in Illinois can begin to ensure that all young adults, regardless of their community, have access to the resources, services, and support they need to succeed at any public institution, not just a select few.
Trevon (Tre) Bosley grew up on the Southside of Chicago, where he witnessed and experienced the effects of gun violence and poverty every day. Following the deaths of his cousin, who was shot and killed down the street from his home, and his older brother, who was shot and killed at church, he dedicated his life to violence prevention work.
Voices of Resilience: Navigating Educational Inequities for a Better Tomorrow
Growing up as the eldest daughter of immigrant parents on the Southside of Chicago, my educational journey began amidst stark disparities in education that plagued our communities. While schools a short distance away from the Southside were equipped with ample resources, my neighborhood lacked funding for essential educational tools like libraries and science classes. These early experiences ignited my passion for education and underscored its critical importance for individuals like me.
In college, I encountered similar barriers as a first-generation student. Navigating unfamiliar terrain, I struggled with a lack of support structures tailored to our needs. Despite these challenges, my determination remained steadfast. I worked two jobs each semester and dedicated summers to tirelessly putting myself through college, alleviating financial strain on my family, particularly my sister, who is a year younger.
However, my sister now faces the risk of losing her financial aid package due to a minimal increase in my parents’ income. The rigid rules of the financial aid system fail to consider the current economic climate. A slight increase in income does not equate to the ability to afford significantly higher tuition costs. Meanwhile, I continued to pursue internships, research opportunities, and extracurricular activities to maximize my college experience, recognizing the value of these opportunities for students like me who come from humble beginnings.
My story reflects the challenges and barriers encountered by many students like me, exacerbated by the current structure of public university funding. Reflecting on my peers from middle school, I am one of the few who made it to college. Many struggled to find institutions that could support their needs and aspirations. For those who did pursue higher education, completion rates remain low, prolonging their journey to a degree.
These challenges extend beyond academics, impacting our mental health, financial stability, and futures. Financial barriers disproportionately affect minorities and marginalized groups. Therefore, equitable funding for all public universities in the state would ensure high-quality education for everyone. Such a system would acknowledge the determination of students who work tirelessly, the sacrifices of immigrant parents, and the aspirations of first-generation students seeking to improve their family’s future.
When individuals from diverse backgrounds are given the opportunity to thrive, our communities flourish, becoming more dynamic and inclusive. By advocating for equitable access to education, we lay the foundation for a brighter, more prosperous future for generations to come. Investing in equity-centered funding is an investment in the future of our state and its people.
Zeina Ammar is a 21-year old first-generation college student from Chicago, Illinois and currently attends the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she is studying Political Science and Communication.