By Allie Arcese, Sr. Director of Strategic Communications & Engagement
Students experiencing poverty who can navigate the college application and financial aid process often continue to face unique challenges after enrolling and moving through their postsecondary programs — and financial aid professionals are well-positioned to break down barriers to help those students succeed.
Brad Barnett, FAAC®, associate vice president for access & enrollment management/financial aid director at James Madison University, and Samantha Hicks, FAAC®, assistant vice president of financial aid and scholarships at Coastal Carolina University, shared their own journeys through poverty and how financial aid professionals can help break down the “hidden rules” that may be preventing students in poverty from succeeding.
“Sometimes, poverty is a very physically hidden type of thing,” Barnett said. “The students on your campus often do a great job camouflaging it, yet the struggles behind the scenes are real.”
While many think of poverty as simply a lack of money, Hicks encouraged her colleagues to view it through the lens as defined by Ruby Payne, an expert on the framework of poverty: a lack of various resources, such as financial, emotional, mental, spiritual, and physical resources, as well as support systems, relationships and role models, knowledge of hidden rules, and formal register. Poverty, Hicks said, is a spectrum that may have a different impact from person to person, just as generational poverty may impact individuals in a different way than situational poverty.
Financial aid professionals can help expand opportunities for students in poverty by examining their policies and procedures and determining how they can make practices that may be hidden or require additional context more explicit for students. For instance, some students may not know they can appeal for more financial aid if they are not explicitly told to do so.
Establishing cross-campus partnerships with other offices on campus, such as housing or advising, can be beneficial in seeking out and assisting students who may be struggling and unaware of where to turn for help. At Coastal Carolina University, the aid office also developed “how-to” guides for students to navigate different processes and a “one-stop” resource website.
Barnett shared information about JMU’s year-long study on the barriers low-income students may face in the life cycle of recruitment through graduation, which brings together stakeholders from across campus to identify, evaluate, and address those obstacles.
Publication Date: 6/26/2025
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