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Community-college Pell-grant share in Ohio

Community colleges in Ohio ranked by Pell-grant share — the percentage of undergraduates who received a federal Pell Grant in the most recent reporting year. Pell share is a useful proxy for the share of the student body from lower-income households and for the institution's experience serving students who depend heavily on need-based federal aid.

  1. Felbry CollegeColumbus, OH84%
  2. ATA College-CincinnatiCincinnati, OH83%
  3. Herzing University-AkronAkron, OH76%
  4. East Ohio CollegeEast Liverpool, OH74%
  5. Professional Skills InstituteMaumee, OH73%
  6. Bryant & Stratton College-ParmaParma, OH72%
  7. Stautzenberger College-BrecksvilleBrecksville, OH63%
  8. Tri-State Bible CollegeSouth Point, OH60%
  9. Galen College of Nursing-CincinnatiCincinnati, OH58%
  10. Valor Christian CollegeCanal Winchester, OH57%
  11. The Modern College of DesignKettering, OH53%
  12. Good Samaritan College of Nursing and Health ScienceCincinnati, OH51%
  13. Global Tech CollegeToledo, OH51%
  14. Hocking CollegeNelsonville, OH46%
  15. Davis CollegeToledo, OH45%
  16. Ohio State University-Newark CampusNewark, OH39%
  17. Ohio State University-Mansfield CampusMansfield, OH39%
  18. Kent State University at TrumbullWarren, OH39%
  19. Gods Bible School and CollegeCincinnati, OH37%
  20. Kent State University at TuscarawasNew Philadelphia, OH34%
  21. University of Northwestern OhioLima, OH34%
  22. University of Rio GrandeRio Grande, OH34%
  23. Kent State University at SalemSalem, OH33%
  24. Kent State University at AshtabulaAshtabula, OH33%
  25. Washington State College of OhioMarietta, OH30%
  26. Ohio State University-Marion CampusMarion, OH30%
  27. Kent State University at StarkNorth Canton, OH29%
  28. Bowling Green State University-FirelandsHuron, OH28%
  29. Belmont CollegeSt Clairsville, OH27%
  30. Ohio State University Agricultural Technical InstituteWooster, OH27%
  31. Central Ohio Technical CollegeNewark, OH27%
  32. Rosedale Bible CollegeIrwin, OH27%
  33. Lorain County Community CollegeElyria, OH26%
  34. Kent State University at GeaugaBurton, OH25%
  35. Lakeland Community CollegeKirtland, OH23%
  36. Marion Technical CollegeMarion, OH23%
  37. Owens Community CollegePerrysburg, OH22%
  38. Kent State University at East LiverpoolEast Liverpool, OH22%
  39. University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash CollegeBlue Ash, OH22%
  40. North Central State CollegeMansfield, OH22%
  41. Southern State Community CollegeHillsboro, OH22%
  42. Zane State CollegeZanesville, OH18%
  43. Northwest State Community CollegeArchbold, OH13%
  44. Ohio University-Southern CampusIronton, OH13%
  45. University of Cincinnati-Clermont CollegeBatavia, OH13%
  46. Ohio University-Lancaster CampusLancaster, OH12%

How to interpret Pell share

The federal Pell Grant is the largest need-based grant program in U.S. higher education. Eligibility is determined by the FAFSA and is based primarily on family income and assets relative to the cost of attendance. A community college with a high Pell-grant share is, by construction, an institution whose student body skews toward lower-income households. That is not a quality signal in either direction on its own — many of the strongest community-college transfer pipelines in Ohio run through institutions with high Pell shares — but it does indicate where institutional services such as emergency aid, child-care subsidies, food pantries, and need-based scholarships are most likely to be developed and well-resourced.

If you are eligible for the Pell Grant, the practical implication is that several of the community colleges on this list will be tuition-free for you after the grant is applied, with state aid and institutional aid often covering most of the remaining cost of attendance. File the FAFSA as early as possible in the academic year — it determines eligibility for all major federal need-based programs, and many state aid programs in Ohio use the FAFSA as their qualifying application as well.