Senator Murray Secures Major Higher Education Relief for Community Colleges, Rural Colleges, and Minority-Serving Institutions

Senator Murray: “This funding is going to make a big difference in the lives of students across Washington state—helping our colleges and universities help meet students’ basic needs and invest in everything from mental health services, housing, and child care, to providing direct financial relief.”

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Education Committee and a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced an additional $2 million in federal relief from the American Rescue Plan to support students pursuing a higher education in Washington state as they recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Senator Murray secured nearly $40 billion throughout the pandemic for colleges, universities, and students; more than $1.3 billion came through for Washington state from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF). HEERF funds can be used to help colleges, universities, and students make it through the pandemic.

HEERF includes billions in investments for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), community colleges, rural colleges, and institutions serving large populations of low-income students. 7.5 percent of HEERF funds are set aside for supplemental awards to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and other Minority-Serving Institutions. The latest round of HEERF grants, known as Supplemental Support under American Rescue Plan (SSARP), provide $198 million in additional targeted investments to support the institutions most impacted by the pandemic, including under-resourced institutions and institutions serving large shares of low-income students and students of color. Of the latest round of SSARP funds, the majority of institutions are required to distribute roughly half of all grant funds directly to students with the greatest need to help them afford tuition, housing, food, and other basic needs. 

“When I helped write the American Rescue Plan, I wanted to make sure we were making a significant investment to ensure students who have weathered this pandemic had the support they needed to recover,” said Senator Murray. “This funding is going to make a big difference in the lives of students across Washington state—helping our colleges and universities help meet students’ basic needs and invest in everything from mental health services, housing, and child care, to providing direct financial relief.”  

The pandemic has led to a steep college enrollment decline, particularly for students with low-incomes and students of color. As of fall 2020, high-minority and high-poverty high schools saw a 9.4 percent and 11.4 percent decline in college enrollment, respectively. And over the last 40 years, we have seen the most growth in jobs requiring higher levels of job preparation, including education and training. Today, 70 percent of jobs are held by people with more than a high school diploma.

A longtime advocate for schools and students, Senator Murray has pushed to expand access to a college education for students in Washington state, and across the country. In March, Senator Murray was instrumental in helping secure major investments in the Fiscal Year 2022 spending package to make college more affordable and accessible. The bill included $1.1 billion, an increase of $40 million for TRIO, and $378 million, an increase of $10 million for GEAR UP—programs that help low-income and first generation students prepare for college and succeed once they’re there. The legislation also increased increase the maximum Pell Grant award by $400 (or 6.2 percent) to $6,895 for the 2022-23 school year—which is the largest increase since the 2009-10 school year.  

See below a full list of Washington state schools receiving HEERF funding under SSARP:

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