State Strategies for Scaling Emergency Aid: Insights from a Florida Landscape Analysis
State Strategies for Scaling Emergency Aid: Insights from a Florida Landscape Analysis, explores how states can expand emergency aid grants as a systemic strategy to support college student retention and completion.
Emergency aid grants—typically $500 to $1,000—provide just-in-time financial support to students facing unexpected one-time expenses such as medical bills, car repairs, child care, utility shutoffs, or other emergencies that could otherwise derail their education. Even in states where tuition is relatively affordable, these grants play a critical role for students with little or no savings who struggle with non-tuition costs like books, housing, and transportation.
While many colleges and universities have developed emergency aid programs, only a small number of states currently provide statewide funding or policy support. This new paper examines how states can move beyond isolated institutional efforts and build emergency aid into broader student success strategies. It analyzes how existing campus programs, state policy contexts, and funding mechanisms can inform the design of effective statewide models, while also outlining key challenges, trade-offs, and both short- and long-term policy options.
The publication uses Florida as a case study. Although Florida has some of the lowest tuition and fees in the nation and long-standing tuition freeze policies, affordability remains a significant challenge. Non-tuition expenses make up the majority of college costs—students’ tuition and fees account for just 29 percent of costs at community colleges and 12 percent at universities (State Higher Education Executive Officers Association, 2025). After accounting for grant aid and earnings from part-time work, the average low-income university student in Florida still faces a $5,300 annual gap, while community college students face a $2,000 gap (Education Trust, 2019).
Despite the absence of state-level emergency aid policies or funding, the analysis finds that three-quarters of Florida’s public universities and about half of its state colleges operate their own emergency aid programs—though program design, implementation, and alignment with national best practices vary widely.
Drawing on a literature review, lessons from other states, interviews with Florida institutions and stakeholders, and an assessment of campus-based programs, the paper offers actionable insights for policymakers. While grounded in Florida’s context, the analysis is designed to serve as a model for other states seeking to understand their own landscapes and pursue statewide support for emergency aid as a tool to improve college affordability, persistence, and completion.
This report was produced by HCM Strategists and authored by Will Carroll, Managing Director of Strategic Finance and Student Success, and Brenae Smith, Associate Director. This report is based on research funded by the Gates Foundation. The findings and conclusions contained within are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the Gates Foundation.
