Financial aid funding debated
By Mathieu Vella
Drastic federal and state budget shortfalls have considerably amplified national
and local appropriations deliberations, especially those concerning funds for higher education.
Currently, the White House is raising objections to a Senate budget bill for the 2003 fiscal year
that would increase the maximum federal Pell Grant to $4,100 from $4,000.
Administration officials have not gone into much detail, but have said that they would like the
maximum to remain steady until Congress provides enough money to erase a deficit in the programs
budget.
Those of us in the financial aid community are happy that Congress is trying to raise the
maximum, Director of Financial Aid Robert Reddy said. Any increase is good, but we
wish it was being raised by several times that amount.
Reddy estimated that about 10 to 12 percent of Oberlin students receive Pell Grants.
Because the Pell Grant functions like an entitlement program, grants are characteristically awarded
to eligible students even if the program suffers deficits. The shortfall is estimated to be around
$2 billion this year.
This January, the College Board, a New York-based nonprofit best known for its administration of
the SAT, suggested that the federal government augment the grants funding enough to cover
the average total of tuition, fees and room and board, which the panel estimated at about $9,700
for the 2002-2003 academic year.
For the first time in the Pell Grants history, many are concerned that award amounts in the
future may be drastically reduced or even all together eliminated to offset federal deficits.
You have to understand that Pell Grants are the foundation block upon which all financial
aid packages are built, Reddy said. Its the program wed like to see the
president and Congress commit to the most.
Some educators see the grant as a critical measure of diversity on university and college campuses.
A recent article in The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education claimed that the percentage
of students at a given college or university who receive federal Pell Grants offers a good indication
of the economic diversity of the student body at that particular institution.
The Pell Grant is typically awarded to students with the greatest overall financial need. Throughout
the nations institutions of higher education, Pell awards overwhelmingly correlate to race
as well as economic background.
Oberlins commitment to its students financial need is one of the strongest in the country.
We say, regardless of state or federal grants, Oberlin commits to 100 percent of student
need through a formula which accounts for the cost of tuition and attendance, family contributions,
student self-help like work-study, and Oberlin grants, Reddy said.
Because of this 100 percent commitment to need, fluctuations in federal and state funds are always
matched by Oberlins proprietary funds.
Public universities, however, are facing deep cuts from cash-strapped states. Many state institutions
of higher education as well as private colleges with small financial endowments have been prompted
to make up for lost revenues by sharply increasing tuition, shifting the burden of troubled budgets
to students and their parents.
Tuition increases at such institutions significantly reduce access to higher education for low-
and moderate-income students, who attend public universities in higher percentages.
Among the largest, the tuition hikes at the Universities of Kansas, Pennsylvania State University
and Texas A&M University ranged from 13.5 percent to over 25 percent. Tuition increases of
greater than eight percent were implemented at public universities in most states.
In light of immense economic downturns and related decreases in the endowment, non-financial aid
related budget cuts rocked Oberlin last year, resulting in debates between students, faculty, staff
and administrators.
These debates about the Pell Grant run alongside an emergency in the Ohio State Legislature that
could affect the funds available for college students who are residents of that state, particularly
Ohio Choice and Ohio need-based programs.
Should such state funds, or even the federal Pell Grant itself disappear, Oberlins commitment
to financial aid would pad the decrease.
A Pell-eligible student at Oberlin is not going to be as hard hit as is a student at a state
or even a private institution that doesnt have that 100 percent commitment to financial need
is, Reddy said. Otherwise, this is an issue that could possibly hurt a lot of people
across the country.
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