Supporting students
in accessing higher education
WHAT IS COLLEGE MATTERS?
College Matters, a $14 million grantmaking initiative of the Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation, seeks to increase college enrollment rates for Marion County high school seniors, especially for students less likely to enroll in college, including students from low-income households, Black students, and Hispanic and Latino students.
High school students face a variety of challenges when considering college, including accessing coursework that prepares them for college, identifying possible career options, and obtaining financial aid. For students without access to relevant support and resources, these challenges can turn into barriers that keep them from applying to and enrolling in college — furthering existing racial and socioeconomic disparities in education and worsening talent shortages in the Indy region.
To help remove some of these barriers and increase college enrollment, College Matters awarded grants to Marion County public high schools and community organizations in two phases, Meeting the Moment and Reversing the Trend. The grantees in both phases are using the funding to support Indianapolis students and their families as they navigate the process of exploring, enrolling in and financing college.
1 Indiana College Readiness Dashboard, 2 FAFSA Completion Dashboard
THE PROBLEM: WE NEED COLLEGE GRADS
More college graduates needed
Low college enrollment is a challenge to our economic vitality. Indianapolis employers continue to report difficulty finding talent with the education and skills needed to fill open positions. Fewer Marion County residents have college degrees than many of our peer cities, which puts us at a competitive disadvantage when trying to attract new businesses and better jobs.
For individuals, education beyond high school contributes to a higher annual income and improved financial stability. Further, increased educational attainment is associated with increased health, happiness, quality of life and civic engagement.
COLLEGE MATTERS: MEETING THE MOMENT
Grants to support FAFSA completion and college enrollment
Through College Matters: Meeting the Moment, the Foundation awarded nearly $5 million in short-term grants to Marion County public schools, community organizations, and the Indiana Commission for Higher Education in September 2023. These grants provide support to students in two areas: completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) — now a requirement to graduate high school in Indiana — and exploring their college options.
Meeting the Moment: Grants to schools
To assist students and their families in meeting Indiana’s new FAFSA mandate during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, the Foundation awarded a total of $3.25 million in grants to 37 Marion County public high schools within 17 school corporations.*
| School corporation | Grant amount |
| Beech Grove City Schools | $160,000 |
| Christel House Indianapolis | $160,000 |
| Goodwill Foundation of Central & Southern Indiana | $200,000 |
| Herron Classical Schools | $200,000 |
| Indianapolis Public Schools | $240,000 |
| Irvington Community Schools | $145,500 |
| KIPP Indy Public Schools | $150,000 |
| MSD of Decatur Township | $200,000 |
| MSD of Lawrence Township | $240,000 |
| MSD of Pike Township | $200,000 |
| MSD of Warren Township | $240,000 |
| MSD of Washington Township | $177,750 |
| MSD of Wayne Township | $240,000 |
| Perry Township Schools | $240,000 |
| Phalen Leadership Academies | $150,000 |
| Purdue Polytechnic High School | $160,000 |
| Victory College Prep | $150,000 |
Meeting the Moment: Grants to community organizations
To reach students and their families in places other than schools, four Marion County community organizations received grants totaling $1.35 million over three years to support students in exploring, enrolling in and financing college.
| Community-based organization | Grant amount |
| Center for Leadership Development | $300,000 |
| Indiana Black Expo | $300,000 |
| Indiana Latino Institute | $450,000 |
| Indianapolis Urban League | $300,000 |
Meeting the Moment: Grant to Indiana Commission for Higher Education
To fund convenings and facilitate the exchange of information between grantees and the State of Indiana, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education received a three-year, $363,000 grant.
COLLEGE MATTERS: REVERSING THE TREND
Grants to implement proven college enrollment strategies
To make an even larger impact on the college enrollment rate, the Fairbanks Foundation announced College Matters: Reversing the Trend in December 2023.
This phase of College Matters, which seeks to reverse the decline in college enrollment in Marion County, began with an invitation to Marion County public school corporations to apply for $20,000 planning grants, which were awarded in March 2024.
The school corporations chosen to receive the planning grants used the funding to create four-year plans to increase college enrollment among their students. Then, in late July 2024, the grantees submitted proposals for additional grants of up to $1.5 million each to implement their plans.
In September 2024, the Fairbanks Foundation awarded funding to the following five school corporations:
- Franklin Township Community School Corporation – $1.5 million
- Indianapolis Public Schools – $1.5 million
- MSD of Warren Township – $1.47 million
- MSD of Wayne Township – $1.5 million
- Victory College Prep – $1.5 million
The school corporations will begin implementing their plans during the 2024-2025 school year, continuing their efforts through the 2027-2028 school year. A portion of the funding will be used to develop long-term sustainability plans.
COLLEGE MATTERS RESOURCES
Below, you’ll find a variety of items used to inform the creation of the College Matters initiative, including data sources and relevant research. For more information on College Matters, contact Foundation staff at college@RMFF.org.
This competitive Request for Applications solicited proposals from eligible Marion County public high schools interested in receiving College Matters: Reversing the Trend planning grant funding.
Schools applying for College Matters: Reversing the Trend planning grants were encouraged to use this template when submitting a line-item budget for the planning grant period.
This Frequently Asked Questions document includes information relevant to schools applying for College Matters: Reversing the Trend planning grants.
This appendix to the College Matters: Reversing the Trend Request for Applications contains summaries of evidence-based interventions that fall under three strategies to increase college enrollment: 1) strengthen college and career counseling; 2) increase families’ financial awareness and help students apply for financial aid; and 3) bolster students’ academic preparation for college.
This journal article highlights the impact of Louisiana’s state policy to mandate the completion of the FAFSA as a requirement to graduate high school. The study demonstrates Louisiana’s FAFSA completion mandate led to a 19 percentage-point increase in FAFSA completion, associated with a 1-2 percentage-point increase in college enrollment.
The College Readiness Dashboard provides interactive data to supplement the annual College Readiness Reports; data is available for the state overall as well as by county, school district and school. The Dashboard includes data for high school graduates from the classes of 2012 through 2021.
This report highlights the demographics of high school graduates in 2019, their level of academic preparation, college-going rates, metrics of success in early college (2018 graduates) and graduation rates (2020 graduates).
This annual report provides information on how many students complete their degree or certificate at Indiana public colleges and universities. In addition to statewide trends, data is provided by campus and by student characteristics.
The College Completion Dashboard provides interactive data to supplement the annual College Completion Reports; data is available for the state overall as well as by county, school district and school. The Dashboard includes data for students who entered college beginning in fall 2006.
This report provides information on the returns a college degree yields after graduation, which extend beyond financial benefits. According to the report, Hoosiers with a college degree have greater job security, enhanced social mobility, increased civic involvement, improved health and wellness and higher quality of life.
The College Value Report Dashboard provides interactive data to supplement the College Value Reports; data is available for all state institutions overall as well as by individual public institution, degree level and program area. The Dashboard includes data for students who graduated college beginning with 2008 and ending with the class of 2017.
This report provides an analysis of the total cost of college at all Indiana public institutions and analyzes the average debt load for college graduates, as well as the impact state and federal financial aid has on reducing the cost for Hoosier students and families. Information is provided overall and by campus.
The Fairbanks Foundation’s free data resource, referred to as the Community Data Snapshot (CDS), includes Marion County- and state-level information on a variety of measures in the Foundation’s focus areas of Education, Health and the Vitality of Indianapolis. Included in the Education section of the Community Data Snapshot are multiple sets of data relevant to College Matters, including high school graduation, college-going and college persistence rates as well as SAT performance and high school diploma type. Many of these measures are also available on the CDS at the school district and school levels.
The Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed Dashboard, created by the Indiana Department of Education, features school and district-level data for Hoosier students in grades PK-12. Created after the Indiana General Assembly enacted a requirement to launch a school performance dashboard, information in the GPS specifically relevant to College Matters includes FAFSA completion and employment/enrollment (the percentage of students who are employed within Indiana or who are enrolled at an Indiana public postsecondary institution one year after their expected graduation year).
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