Will Trump’s federal funding order hurt Winthrop, Clinton? Leaders scramble to figure it out
The 220 students who attend Clinton College in Rock Hill aren’t likely to feel the effects of President Donald Trump’s new order pausing financial aid programs straight away. In time, the consequences to the school itself could be severe.
“That’s the area that’s not clear to us right now,” said Archinya Ingram, interim president of the historically Black college founded in 1894.
On Tuesday, the White House released information on a temporary pause to grant, loan or other federal aid programs due to executive orders signed by Trump. The pause isn’t a blanket decision, according to the White House, but aims at programs promoting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, the Green New Deal and “nongovernmental organizations that undermine the national interest.” A federal judge put a hold on the order on Tuesday.
Federal aid is critical to colleges and universities, from school funding to student scholarships. York County has more than 10,000 students between Winthrop University, York Technical College and Clinton.
Winthrop, the largest four-year school in York County with nearly 5,000 students, is consulting with its funding agencies to see what impacts the federal decision might have, spokeswoman Judy Longshaw said Tuesday afternoon.
“It is too early to determine how our university programs, grants and students will be affected by the administration’s recent executive order,” she said.
The school has gotten calls with questions about financial aid, she said. Direct loans, Pell grants and other aid is provided directly to individuals and shouldn’t be impacted, Longshaw said.
Ingram, whose staff spent Tuesday scouring the new federal rules, agrees the grants or payments to students through Title IV funding shouldn’t be impacted.
“We’re hoping that we’re interpreting it right,” Ingram said. “Of course, everything is still kind of a huge gray area for us.”
There’s a pressing concern, though, about Title III funding. That’s federal money designated for historically Black colleges and universities.
“Our world, we are all communicating,” Ingram said of HBCUs. “We are sharing information as we are getting it.”
Student enrollment and school services
The more than 200 students enrolled at Clinton this semester already have their financial aid processed, so even if there were a threat to federal student loans or grants it wouldn’t impact them until at least the summer. Clinton offers a summer bridge program that receives some Title IV funding, along with its main semesters each fall and spring.
Title III funds support historically Black schools and largely allow the schools to determine how to spend the money.
“We’ve used Title III for everything from technology enhancements to growing our endowment, for our counselor positions,” Ingram said. “It’s a large range, an array of funding opportunities.”
Staffing and school programming often rely on Title III funding. Ingram sat down with her team Tuesday to try to work through the hype created by news out of Washington, by reading and looking to understand the orders. Ingram is hopeful and prayerful, she said, that Trump will understand the impact his orders could have on educational opportunities.
“If our HBCUs are not supported, it just really puts a huge population in a quandary when it comes down to the opportunity to pursuing education,” Ingram said.
Education and opportunity at Clinton
Last fall, Clinton announced Ingram would take on the interim role after former President Lester McCorn took over at Paine College in Georgia. Ingram has been at Clinton for 19 years, and worked under two administrators. But what got her to that opportunity to lead a college came much earlier.
Ingram was a first-generation, low-income student given the opportunity to attend Clemson University as a top minority student.
“That opportunity literally changed the trajectory of my life,” Ingram said. “And if we do away with those programs, we do away with opportunity for people — who are hard-working — to improve their life’s journey.”
Clinton is an intentionally small campus focused on helping each student maximize success, Ingram said. There’s concern that HBCUs might face significant challenges if they lose federal funding. But the focus in Clinton’s response will remain on students.
“If we do away with these programs,” Ingram said, “we’re doing away with those opportunities.”
This story was originally published January 29, 2025 at 12:07 PM.
