Rice University
PAE-10: Affordability and Access Programs

Beginning in 2004, through a joint collaboration, the Office of the Associate Provost Diversity Outreach at Rice University has facilitated the Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club Upward Bound Summer Academic Program for underprivileged students on the Rice campus. Upward Bound helps high school students from low-income families prepare for college. Students from Lee High School in Houston Independent School District are eligible to participate in the program.

Starting with the 09-10 freshman class, Rice no longer awards loans to students whose family income is below $80,000. All of these students' financial needs are now met through a combination of grants, work study, merit aid (if qualified) and institutional funds. Students at Rice have the option of participating in a federal Work-Study program, such as the America Reads & Counts Program. Initiated in 1997, the program helps to meet the needs of children in Houston by placing Rice University students in work-study positions as reading and math tutors at a neighborhood center, an elementary school, or a unique cultural arts center. Rice students receive competitive hourly pay through their federal work-study award while directly addressing a pressing social problem.

Rice offers a number of programs to prepare students from low-income backgrounds for higher education, most notably the Houston Scholars Program, GEAR-UP, and Project GRAD. Houston Scholars Program: Through a joint collaboration, the Office of the Associate Provost Diversity Outreach at Rice University facilitates the academic and professional success of economically disadvantaged students participating in the program. Houston Scholars Program is aligned with Rice University, KIPP Academy and DePelchin Children's Center to provide mentoring and education services including mentoring, transportation, boarding, college-placement, financial-aid counseling services and internships. Every angle is covered from legal to medical, and academic to pedagogic, so that the students receive the best care. GEAR-UP (Gaining Early Awareness for Undergraduate Programs): Rice University is a university partner with HISD and Project GRAD to implement this five year grant, awarded in 1999. The purpose of the GEAR-UP program, a nationwide systemic initiative, is to give low-income, underrepresented middle school students the skills, encouragement, and preparation to pursue secondary education. The Office of the Associate Provost, Educational Outreach, serves as the Rice University Partnership Coordinator for McReynolds Middle School and Wheatley High School. Through this collaboration, the Educational Outreach office provides staff and undergraduate student mentors and faculty speakers for students, in addition to exposing to a selective academic environment through field trips during the academic year. Project GRAD: Initiated in 2001, Rice University's campus is one of the Hoston sites for the Project GRAD Summer Academy. Project GRAD is a school-community collaborative in the Houston Independent Schol District to improve the instructional quality and culture of at-risk feeder systems of schools. The mission of Project GRAD's scholarship program is to increase the graduation and college attendance rates of disadvantaged inner-city students in Houston through summer institutes, teacher and staff training, strong parental involvement, and enhanced curricula. The Rice University Project GRAD Advanced Summer Mathematics Academy is a summer program designed to ensure the success of students in advanced mathematics courses, while exposing them to a selective university atmosphere.

The following is a summary of the 2009-2010 financial aid distribution at Rice ($ in millions): Institutional funds: $50.4 State and federal grants: $4.3 Outside scholarships: $3.2 Number of undergraduates receiving aid: 2,290 (Total number of undergraduates: 3,279) Amount of need-based grant aid from Rice funds (included in institutional funds amount noted above): $28.7 Number of undergraduates receiving need-based grant aid from institutional funds: 1,289 Federal need-based loans awarded to students: $1.9 Percent of all degree-seeking students receiving Title IV aid: 31% Percent of all degree-seeking undergraduates receiving Title IV aid: 35% Data source: http://www.professor.rice.edu/professor/Cost_and_Financial_Aid.asp?SnID=1563960843 For a comprehensive list of scholarships and additional financial aid information, please visit: http://staff.rice.edu/staff/Scholarships.asp http://financialaid.rice.edu

Junior Achievement: Rice students volunteer to teach business skills and concepts to elementary students in at-risk or inner-city schools for the purpose of showing young students that what they are learning in school is relevant to daily life. This program began in 1995 and is funded through the Community Involvement Center of Rice University and Junior Achievement Inc. One-on-one Tutoring: The One-On-One Tutoring Program provides tutoring and mentoring for underprivileged children. The program matches student volunteers with students to tutor them in English and Math. Volunteers spend three hours one night a week during the school year. Outreach Tutoring: Working with the Hispanic Association for the Cultural Enrichment at Rice (HACER) since 1990, the program provides tutoring and mentoring to underprivileged children in the Hispanic community of greater Houston. Friends of Young Minds: Members of the Rice community formed this organization in 1996 to help children from financially disadvantaged regions of the world have access to fun education. Their strategy involves collecting old computers from individuals and companies and shipping them to Third World countries, primarily India. Spring Fling: Spring Fling is a carnival held in April for Houston's disadvantaged children. It places an emphasis on education (playground safety, animal safety, fun science projects, musical instruments, etc.).