Penn State received an "F" overall for minority and low-income access, making it a bottom-feeder among Big Ten schools surveyed in a study released last week.

The Education Trust, an advocacy organization for equal education opportunities, compiled the report, which concentrated on the main campuses of each state's most prestigious public university. Of these 50 flagship universities, Penn State was one of seven that received "F's," and no institution ranked higher than a "B."

Penn State's failing final grade was a cumulative average of grades in three separate categories -- minority access, low-income access and minority success -- to determine the adequacy of the university's efforts to enroll blacks, Hispanics and Native Americans, as well as low-income students.

Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust and co-author of the report, said the report was triggered by an alarming decline in minority and low-income access to flagship universities over time.

"We thought it was worrisome," Haycock said. "As college was getting more important and more minority students were preparing to go to college, colleges were essentially turning their backs on them."

Terrell Jones, vice president of educational equity, said the report does not accurately portray Penn State's standing against its Big Ten peers.

"If you look at the numbers and what we're doing, it's hard for me to buy it 100 percent, but I think it's a good report," he said. "We could be doing better."

The Education Trust report comes two weeks after Penn State released its minority enrollment statistics for 2006-2007, which showed continued increases across the minority population. The Education Trust report shows Penn State making progress over the past 12 years in both minority access and success but still earning disappointing grades in both categories.

"It was a surprise to get a failing grade because of how well we are doing," Annemarie Mountz, Penn State spokeswoman, said.

Mountz said she felt the criteria used in the study was suspect. She called its findings "misleading" and "lacking of all context," and said she felt the report would not help anybody address any problems.

"We're never satisfied with where we are, and we're always looking to improve, but I think we're on the right track," she added.

The report calculated minority access by comparing the minority composition of the statewide high school graduating class in spring 2004 and the number of minorities that enrolled at Penn State as freshmen in fall 2004. Penn State earned an "F" in this category.

Haycock said the existing measures to determine excellence at flagship universities, such as Penn State's record-high applicant pool or its ranking with regard to selectivity, make a mockery of what higher education should be.

"Right now its really easy for universities to ride the wave of rising privileges ... because it makes you look like you're getting better even if you aren't," she said.

Penn State spokeswoman Jill Shockey said that, given the university's increasing numbers across minority enrollment, she didn't feel Haycock's comments were applicable to Penn State.

Low-income access, a concern raised at the recent Penn State Board of Trustees meeting as a result of rising tuition on campus, was also a failing category for Penn State.

Since 1992, the report determined that the university has gotten worse at providing access to low-income students.

Access to low-income students was gauged by comparing the percentage of Penn State students receiving Pell grants, need-based government grants, to the percentage of Pell grant recipients at universities across the state.

Universities' trouble admitting low-income students is a result of spending too much money on financial aid for students who mostly don't need it, Haycock said.

Mountz said the low-income grade was misleading because many merit-based scholarships go to individuals who would receive need-based aid as well. Jones also said the amount of tuition covered by the Pell grants has decreased significantly.

The third category, minority success, compared the graduation rate of minority students and their white counterparts. While Penn State fared slightly better with a "C," Haycock noted that many universities earned "A's" and "B's."

Jones emphasized Penn State's retention of minority students as the key variable in the report, citing the university's African American graduation rate as among the highest in the country.

"You're doing better at graduating the students you admit, but not doing great at admitting them in the first place," Haycock said.