Welcome to the Scholarship Displacement Action Page!
In this page you will find information about scholarship displacement and actions that you can take to join the fight against scholarship displacement.
What is scholarship displacement?
Scholarship displacement is a practice where colleges and universities displace previously awarded financial aid when a student is awarded a private scholarship, effectively reducing the amount of financial aid awarded and resulting in a zero net gain for the student. This is a practice that many students are not aware of and don’t realize that it happens to them when they receive an external private scholarship.
Negative Impact of Scholarship Displacement
- It forces low-income students to replace displaced financial aid with loans or work, which directly contradicts the purpose of private scholarships.
- It punishes students who took the time and effort to find private scholarships
- It creates a system where privately funded scholarships could provide more benefit to institutions than students, which is not the intent of private scholarships.
- It diminishes the intention of scholarships to make higher education more affordable to low-income and underrepresented students.
SUPPORT AB 288
The California Ban on Scholarship Displacement Act of 2021
AB 288 bill would prohibit the displacement of financial aid awards in California due to receipt of private scholarships of students who are eligible for the: 1) Federal Pell Grant and/or 2) California Dream Act financial aid at both public and private institutions of higher education in the state of California.
Learn more about AB 288 California Ban on Scholarship Displacement Act at https://www.norcalpromisecoalition.org/policy. Become a supporter of AB 288 today as an organization or an individual!
STUDENT STORIES
Check out How Scholarship Displacement Affected Me written by a student on the Let’s Go team.
“Award displacement affects all students, especially low-income students who aspire to apply to as many scholarships as possible to help with all the costs related to going to college. It’s unfortunate that institutions like UC Berkeley reduce aid amounts because scholarships can give more money to students.”
– Celeste Rojas, UC Berkeley Student
Spread the word!
Access this toolkit to help us raise awareness about scholarship displacement. It includes sample social media posts, email samples, and more.
For questions or comments please contact mer@norcalpromisecoalition.org