Program Overview

A good job, a living wage, a path to social stability – education gives us choices.

Our Education Program focuses on expanding student access to higher education and opening avenues to academic success, particularly for those historically left out of the picture: low-income, first-generation, African American, Latino, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and Native American students.

We promote postsecondary access and success for low-income and underrepresented students through three focus areas:

Pathways to and through college

Just getting in the door isn't enough. We want to propel more low-income, first-generation, underrepresented students into two- and four-year institutions, and with the skills and support needed to stay and graduate.

Strengthening institutions

We work to build the capacity of postsecondary institutions that predominately serve low-income, underrepresented and first-generation college students.

Higher education productivity

A more efficient, productive higher education system means more college graduates with more opportunity to launch productive careers.

Our goal is to work with systems and networks of institutions that strive to remove barriers to access and success. We provide project support, operating support and planning grants to fund programs that are:

• National, regional, state or consortium-based
• Innovative
• Readily expanded
• Sustainable

Because we are committed to improving U.S. college achievement on a broad scale, we rarely fund individual institutions of higher education to promote postsecondary access and success for low-income and underrepresented students.

Higher education in South Africa

We also make grants to promote access and success at South African universities, believing that strong universities are the best engines of economic growth in this important and influential fledgling democracy.

Investing in Facilities

For more than 85 years, we served the facilities-capital needs of higher education. However, the primary focus of our Education Program has shifted to promote post-secondary access and success for low-income and underrepresented students. The legacy of our capital-challenge grantmaking rests with the broad promotion of sustainable design on college and university campuses.

We occasionally award challenge grants, but only for higher education construction or renovation projects that formally seek environmental sustainability certification at the silver level (or better) from the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED – Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – rating system. These grants must also fit our Strengthening Institutions priorities.

Both the educational institution and the project seeking funding from must exemplify the four values central to the team’s work: creating access for low-income people, diversity, environmental conservation and community impact.

To learn more about our challenge grant, read A Guide to the Challenge Grant (a historic document).

Application Process

Please review the applicable focus area’s Web page and the application process it recommends.