While public awareness of housing insecurity among community college students has grown over the years, there’s now a “distinct uptick” in new pilot projects and plans to house them.

These renewed efforts to offer housing options come in the aftermath of a pandemic that closed campuses and left many students scrambling for affordable places to live. Colleges are also finding lawmakers, local housing authorities, and four-year institutions to be increasingly willing partners in these initiatives at a time when already underresourced institutions are beleaguered by plummeting enrollments and budget constraints that would prevent them from building housing on their own.

Like many historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), Wilberforce University is fighting to spare graduates from crushing student loan debt. Last month, the university did just that when it announced to 2020 and 2021 graduates that their financial debts to the university would be forgiven.

HBCUs have long been chronically underfunded. This complicates their efforts to provide scholarships to students desperately needing financial support. About 25 percent of students who attend HBCUs borrow $40,000 or more, according to the United Negro College Fund.

Photo: Reed Saxon

President Joe Biden’s ambitious proposal to upgrade the country’s infrastructure is welcome news after a years-long failure to train the kinds of workers needed to do it. But many of the industries needed to complete this work are already struggling to find skilled labor. 

A more diverse workforce could help fill jobs, but it will take broader steps to complete the slew of infrastructure projects proposed by the administration. Experts say Congress should pay attention to a few relatively easy fixes, including allowing students to use Pell Grants to pay for short-term college vocational programs and investing in child care to help older students get the training they need to change jobs.