Community Service Federal Work-Study: Higher Ed’s Best Kept Secret

Posted by Campus Compact on May 7, 2024

Approximately 3,400 postsecondary institutions participate in the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program as one way they provide financial aid to their students. This means it’s highly likely you are either a student, faculty, staff, or administrator at an FWS participating institution or know someone who is. You may very well even know someone who has or has been a recipient of FWS funds. But how much do you really know about this important federal program?

The Federal Work-Study program was established by Congress as part of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 and later incorporated under the Higher Education Act of 1965. The program provides funds to colleges and universities to pay undergraduate and graduate students for part-time employment as a way of helping them meet their expenses while enrolled in college. It also encourages jobs related to a student’s course of study and community service work. With the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act in 1992, 5% of FWS dollars at each institution was to be allocated to public service work. The percentage was increased to 7% in 2000.

So, you might be asking yourself: “What does the community service FWS allocation mean for my students or my institution?” Yes, students receiving FWS funds could choose to work in dining services, or with the campus landscaping team, or they might utilize their funds to become a reading tutor for preschool-age or elementary school children, or a math tutor for students at a local middle or high school, or perhaps to become a literacy tutor in at a community-based family literacy center, or even work with a local emergency preparedness and response agency. The possibilities are endless. For your campus or community partner, the benefits are limitless. They can provide quality employment opportunities for students that, many times can align with the student’s career path for a 25% cost share of the student’s FWS allocation. At the same time, the student is able to gain useful skills while the campus and community also benefit.

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