Evaluating the Effects of Universal Place-Based Scholarships on Student Outcomes: The Buffalo “Say Yes to Education” Program

Abstract

A growing number of cities and states have been providing large tuition subsidies for residents through initiatives often called “place-based” or “Promise” scholarship programs. We examine the effects of a prominent last-dollar, place-based scholarship program, Say Yes to Education in Buffalo, NY, on college matriculation and persistence. Employing a difference-in-differences strategy comparing changes across cohorts of students eligible and ineligible for large college scholarships, we find that scholarship eligibility is associated with an increase of 20 percent in the likelihood of matriculating into college within one year of graduation, and an increase in the likelihood of persistence into a second year of college of nearly 16 percent. Increases in matriculation are largely at four-year institutions, where most of the additional funding from Say Yes is concentrated, exclusively at in-state institutions, both public and private, and are largest at colleges with more selective admission rates. Finally, we see the largest increases in matriculation and persistence among students who attend high schools in the middle third of the poverty distribution. These results suggest that the additional aid provided by Say Yes plays an important role in increasing college matriculation and encouraging students to attend more selective schools. © 2019 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management