Schools in Ohio with excellent Merit Aid

Minot State is not an HBCU. I have not said anything negative about HBCUs. Certainly you can get to grad school from some of them, although you might find it an uncomfortable environment to go to school in as a white Jewish student. Regarding the countries you listed for grad school, you have to have proof that you have the assets to live on before they will give you a visa (I know because one of my kids studied abroad as a direct enrolled student at U Helsinski for a semester). No bank statements proving your assets, no visa. No visa, no grad school attendance.

I am going to be super honest. I think you are on a path where your kids are going to have a zero EFC just like you do. You need to think hard about what majors will help you get out of the poverty your family lives in now. Even if you scrape through undergrad with minimal debt, you will be buried in debt from grad school in a low paying profession. I probably wouldn’t say this to a kid who has well off parents to backstop them, but you unfortunately are not in that position.

To me it sounds like you are reaching far afield for straws – when you should be looking closer to home to a CC and your very good state university that definitely sends a lot of students to good grad schools. While it is possible to go to grad schools from a lower ranked school, it is honestly harder, and a lot fewer students pull it off. @partyof5 has given you a few good in-state options to consider as well.