Resources

Dr. Jeanne Oswald
20 West State St.
PO Box 542
Trenton, NJ 08625-0542
Telephone: (609) 292-8916
Fax: (609) 292-7225
E-mail: joswald@njche.che.state.nj.us

The New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund

The New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund was created by law in 1968 to ensure access to higher education for those who come from backgrounds of economic and educational disadvantage. The Fund assists low-income New Jersey residents who are capable and motivated but lack adequate preparation for college study.

The Fund is distinctive in the comprehensiveness of its approach. To ensure the opportunity to attend college, the Fund provides supplemental financial aid to help cover college costs (such as books, fees, room and board) that are not covered by the state’s Tuition Aid Grant program and the Federal Pell Grant. To ensure a viable opportunity to succeed and graduate, the Fund supports a wide array of campus-based outreach and support services at 28 public and 13 independent institutions.

The Fund is governed by a Board of Directors, currently chaired by James Avery, which is appointed by the Governor. The Board sets policy, approves all necessary regulations for program operation and student eligibility, develops the annual budget request for the statewide program, and supports EOF programs at public and independent colleges and universities.

The EOF Board also supervises a small graduate grant program, as well as the C. Clyde Ferguson Law and the Martin Luther King Physician -Dentistry programs.

EOF History

The New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) is a program providing special assistance to young men and women from economically and educationally disadvantaged backgrounds. Among the many powerful strategies that EOF has implemented are basic skills testing and remediation, systematic retention efforts, peer counseling and peer tutoring, academic support courses, multicultural curricula and human relations programming, student leadership development, and outcomes-based program evaluation and performance funding.

New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund has also been a leader in the higher education system’s effort to increase diversity. While participation is not limited to minority students, EOF sponsors more than one-third of the black and Hispanic students at the state colleges and New Jersey’s independent institutions, and over a quarter at the public colleges and both four-year and two-year. EOF enrolls about 12.5% of the first-time, full-time New Jersey freshmen who enter the state’s colleges and Universities each fall.

Eligibility Information

The New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) provides financial assistance and support services (e.g. counseling, tutoring, developmental course work) to students from educationally and economically disadvantaged backgrounds, who attend institutions of higher education in the State of New Jersey and who might otherwise be unable to attend such institutions.

New Jersey’s community colleges and public and private four-year colleges and universities participate in the EOF Program. However, the actual number of available spaces at each college or university is limited. To participate in an EOF program, students must apply to a New Jersey college or university and file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Because EOF is a campus-based program, each campus is responsible for student recruitment, selection, program services, and its own specific criteria for EOF admission and program participation.

Students should contact the EOF director at the particular institution of their interest for specific admissions information and requirements for participation in the EOF program. Grants are generally available to students from families with a background of historical poverty, who meet the academic criteria set by the institution of their choice. The program is limited to applicants whose gross income does not exceed the limits listed below (based on how many people in the household).