Spring Break
Federal Pell Grant reform would help middle class
The Editorial Board - The Lariat, Baylor U.
Issue date: 3/10/09 Section: Opinion
Editor's note: Seth Stern is taking the week off. His column will return following spring break.
(U-WIRE) - For many colleges, raising tuition has become an accepted practice, but the stimulus bill may give students a new way to counter college costs.
President Barack Obama recently announced several new education reforms that are geared primarily at college students. One point in his plan was increasing the Federal Pell Grant. In his plan, money will be diverted from the federal student loan division, which the president hopes will have a $4 billion surplus after its own reconstruction.
In the past, the average Pell Grant recipient came from a family making less than $20,000 per year. With the increase, families making up to $50,000 are eligible.
It's the eighth consecutive year Pell Grants have increased the maximum payout per student, but before, the U.S. Congress controlled the purse strings.
The new system will let the Pell Grant automatically increase every year as inflation and/or tuition increases.
The rise in Pell Grants will jump from a maximum of $4,731 to $5,350. But every applying student does not receive the maximum amount of Pell Grant funding.
Since 2002, the average Pell Grant has grown from $2,000 to $2,300, while the maximum amount a student can receive has grown from $4,000 to $4,731 in that time frame. While that's still a major help, it hasn't kept pace with the rising cost of tuition. Or inflation.
In 2002, Baylor first changed to a flat-rate tuition for full-time students. It was $15,700 per year, almost $8,000 less than the current cost of education. That's a 50 percent increase. The Pell Grant average payout has only grown $300, which is a 15 percent increase.
That's why a $600 jump is necessary. In the current structure, families making between $20,000 and $50,000 are caught in a gap between federal assistance and the ability to pay for college themselves. An increased Pell Grant would help these families.
(U-WIRE) - For many colleges, raising tuition has become an accepted practice, but the stimulus bill may give students a new way to counter college costs.
President Barack Obama recently announced several new education reforms that are geared primarily at college students. One point in his plan was increasing the Federal Pell Grant. In his plan, money will be diverted from the federal student loan division, which the president hopes will have a $4 billion surplus after its own reconstruction.
In the past, the average Pell Grant recipient came from a family making less than $20,000 per year. With the increase, families making up to $50,000 are eligible.
It's the eighth consecutive year Pell Grants have increased the maximum payout per student, but before, the U.S. Congress controlled the purse strings.
The new system will let the Pell Grant automatically increase every year as inflation and/or tuition increases.
The rise in Pell Grants will jump from a maximum of $4,731 to $5,350. But every applying student does not receive the maximum amount of Pell Grant funding.
Since 2002, the average Pell Grant has grown from $2,000 to $2,300, while the maximum amount a student can receive has grown from $4,000 to $4,731 in that time frame. While that's still a major help, it hasn't kept pace with the rising cost of tuition. Or inflation.
In 2002, Baylor first changed to a flat-rate tuition for full-time students. It was $15,700 per year, almost $8,000 less than the current cost of education. That's a 50 percent increase. The Pell Grant average payout has only grown $300, which is a 15 percent increase.
That's why a $600 jump is necessary. In the current structure, families making between $20,000 and $50,000 are caught in a gap between federal assistance and the ability to pay for college themselves. An increased Pell Grant would help these families.
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