9,500 ACC Students Could Lose Pell Grants Under House-Passed Bill

Faithly Flores, born and raised in Austin, is the first in her family to “even get a foot in the door” of college.

It wasn’t easy. Flores, 24, tried to attend classes at Austin Community College when her son was a baby, but without reliable child care, she was forced to drop out. She worked as a cashier at H-E-B to afford rent for the “smallest bedroom” in her grandmother's rented home, where she and her 2-year-old son live together.

But when a college adviser from Breakthrough Central Texas told her about federal financial aid that could pay for her education and a licensed vocational nursing program she could take on weekends and during the evening to care for her son during the day, she leapt at the opportunity.

“All the money that I made from work, from H-E-B, was just enough to pay my bills and feed my son. That's all I had before,” Flores said. “School was not even in the idea unless for that Pell grant.”

For the past 53 years, U.S. students from low-income families like Flores have been able to enter college against all odds because of the Pell grant, which propelled students to family sustaining wages in high-demand jobs. Austin Community College formed a year after the grant began, determined to provide affordable quality education to the region, which it now does for 70,000 students annually with the Pell grants' support.

But now, President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” as passed by the House, could create an unraveling of that financial support the most financially in-need students depend on, including Flores.

To qualify for full-time Pell grant award under the House’s passed reconciliation bill, students would have to take 15 credit hours instead of 12 hours a semester, and students under 7.5 hours would not be eligible.

“That has a ripple effect,” ACC's Jason Edens, the director for financial aid and compliance, told the American-Statesman.

Only 5% of the more than 10,000 students on a Pell grant, or 550 ACC students, take 15 hours or more presently. Based on fall 2024 enrollment data, the other 9,500 students on Pell — about 14% of ACC’s student body — would lose at least part of their grant, and 3,600 students would “completely lose their Pell," Edens said.

Flores, who is on part-time Pell now to cover six credits this summer, would no longer be eligible for that aid under the House's passed bill. In the fall, she plans to enroll in 12 credits, but if her Pell award is partial, she may not be able to pursue it, as child care is her top priority.

Without the full funding, Flores said she would be in “survival mode again.”

“I would have to come up with some kind of money, and it'd be impossible,” Flores said. “I feel like I would be stuck in the work just for enough rather than invest in my education to make more money.”

The Senate version of the bill, passed Tuesday, does not include the eligibility changes. But as the House now considers the Senate changes, experts are closely watching to see if the House's Pell grant changes will make the final cut.

'Backbone of financial aid puzzle'

The Trump administration, which has proposed a 15% cut to the Department of Education, including cuts to the maximum award, said cuts to the Pell grants are necessary to address an “untenable” $2.7 billion shortfall in the program, Inside Higher Ed reported. The award has increased over the years with the rising cost of college.

Proponents of the new provisions say raising credit requirements will save the country money and incentivize full-time enrollment, but opponents say the cuts are short-sighted and will cause a flight from higher education. The Senate increased access to Pell for short-term job programs and maintains present eligibility standards, but will limit graduate student loans and raise university endowments.

The Pell grant is the top single source of financial aid in Texas, annually helping 492,000 students, according to EdTrust, an education advocacy group. Its data shows more than 310,000 Texas students would see a $1,500 decrease in their Pell award, and 143,000 Texans could lose their entire grant if the House version passes.

Community colleges, tailored to non-traditional students, would bear the brunt of the impact, Edens said, as more students enroll part-time. Almost two-thirds of community college students attend while working, and a quarter are student parents, according to data from Trellis, a Texas-based higher education organization focused on improving access.

The top reason students opt not to pursue higher education is cost, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board states, though having a degree can drastically increase earnings. The eligibility changes, Edens said, would lead many ACC students to “drop out."

“Being enrolled part-time does not make someone any less financially needy than if they are enrolled full-time,” Edens said.

Will Davies, director of policy research at Breakthrough Central Texas, a nonprofit helping 3,500 Austin-area first-generation students, including Flores, access college each year, said the Pell grant is the “foundation” of college attainment for its students, who are often low-income.

The Pell grant's investment in students, he said, also ultimately “pays for itself" in terms of the economic contributions students eventually make.

“It’s the backbone of the entire financial aid puzzle that they're trying to put together as they're trying to pursue their degrees,” Davies said. “You're talking about significant chunks of these students that are working toward degrees and really high-demand fields for the region.”

Flores uses her Pell grant to pay for tuition, fees, books and transportation. She wants to be a nurse to help her community, as well as secure a steady income for her son and become more independent in an increasingly expensive city.

In two years with an associates degree in her high-demand field, Flores could achieve a wage of $30.64 an hour in Austin, or almost $64,000. If she pursues a bachelor’s degree after that, she could make even more, contributing more in taxes and filling needed jobs at local hospitals.

“It’s a help me help you situation,” Flores said. “This program can not only help me, but many other students in the same boat as me, who would then take the money, have a better education, make more money, send more tax money.”

What's next

House Republicans are expected to pass a reconciled version of the bill as soon as July 4. Alone, the Senate version keeps eligibility for Pell grants at 15 credits a semester — a welcome alternative to opponents of the House version — but eliminates eligibility for those who have full-ride scholarships. It also impacts the ability of certain students to access federal loans, said Roxanne Garza, director of higher education policy at Ed Trust, who worked under the Biden administration at the Department of Education.

As the Senate and House reconcile the differences, EdTrust is advocating for eligibility and student loan access to stay the same.

“The Pell grant really supports students in meeting all of their needs,” Garza said. “We don't want to see that limitation for students.”

Davies and Edens have been advocating with lawmakers to restore the Pell grant eligibility in the final version, and share the positive impact it's had on students.

“Education changes lives, especially at the community college level,” Edens said. “Nobody's making a living off their financial aid. Nobody's getting rich off of it. This is money that the most financially vulnerable population of students need just to meet the basic costs of education and the basic costs of life.”

Though Flores is still determined to receive her degree, she implores lawmakers to protect Pell. Helping single mothers pursue their education and fix a healthcare worker shortage, she said, “just works.”