Students often get discouraged, but there are ways to bridge the funding gaps. More generous “last mile” scholarships are available from the state’s public universities, even as those schools are strapped for cash. Scholarships from foundations and nonprofits, such as Hope Chicago, also make a difference.
Counselors worry that the future of Pell grants is uncertain with the Trump administration attempting to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. And the state of Illinois has reduced the maximum MAP grant for the 2025-26 academic year to $8,064 from $8,400.
A handful of top students get free rides to some of the best colleges, including room and board. But most stay in Illinois to take advantage of MAP grants, whether at a public or private school.
“I’m seeing the money stay within Illinois,” Arroyo-Kearney says. But where students used to go away for college, they’re now living at home to save on room and board. That’s benefited Chicago-area public schools, such as Chicago State University, the City Colleges of Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University and the University of Illinois Chicago, as well as private schools such as Dominican University in River Forest and National Louis University.
Baker College Preparatory High School on the Far Southeast Side, also in the Noble Network of Charter Schools, is sending 16 students to Illinois State University in downstate Normal, thanks to generous financial aid that will help cover the cost of room and board. “Illinois State had the best financial aid package this year,” says Baker college counselor Selena Dixon. The university has placed a priority on the scholarships needed to sustain enrollments, even as it suspends salary increases and cuts other expenses.
High school students at Benito Juarez Community Academy in Pilsen benefited from a scholarship program through the nonprofit Hope Chicago, headed by former Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson. In 2022, Hope Chicago selected the academy and four other high schools on the South and West sides for its scholarship program. It offered each enrolled student and one of their parents the opportunity to pursue postsecondary education without incurring debt.
College enrollment at the academy had plateaued at around 50%, says Yesenia Olvera, director of postsecondary success at Benito Juarez. The Hope Chicago scholarship program boosted college enrollment to more than 80% over four years. Scholarship recipients are enrolled at public and private schools in Illinois.
Olvera says more male students, and students who otherwise would have looked for a job, took advantage of the scholarship to pursue degrees or advanced certificates.
Now that the scholarship program is expiring at Benito Juarez, Olvera says she has her work cut out for her in preparing the junior class and their families. “Our fear is what happens to students who don’t have access,” she says. “We have students who got the Hope (Chicago) scholarship, but their siblings won’t get it. Now parents have to start scrambling.”
