Hungry, Homeless and in College

[KamaAina]

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/04/opinion/hungry-homeless-and-in-college.html

THREE months after starting college, Brooke Evans found herself without a place to live. She was 19.

She slept in libraries, bathrooms and her car. She sold plasma and skipped meals. It was hard to focus or participate in class, and when her grades fell, her financial aid did, too. Eventually, she left college and began sleeping on the street, in debt, without a degree....

One in five of those students said that, in the last 30 days, she had gone hungry because of a lack of money. Thirteen percent had experienced a form of homelessness in the last year, having been thrown out or evicted, lived in shelters or abandoned buildings, or gone without a place to sleep at all. Far more — just over half — were at risk of each of those conditions. A majority had financial aid and jobs, but it wasn’t enough.

Such high rates of food and housing insecurity among hard-working college students indicate that the nation faces a serious crisis. Much of the conversation in Washington concerning college costs — whether it’s about simplifying the financial aid application or refinancing student loans — seems almost trivial in comparison with the problems these students face.

has this country come to?! This is why Bernie's calling for free community college!

[leveymg]

1. That brings back memories from a spell in the early '80s

when I was stranded at one of the most expensive private colleges in America. Three part-time jobs, maxed out on my financial aid and student loans. Slept in a lounge for a while, and snuck into dining halls. Luckily I was a desk guard so I could get into dorms, otherwise I'd have been eating pizza crusts out of trash cans on the street.

Not fun.

[newfie11]

2. A far cry from free college in California on the 60s

$6.50/semester is what I paid.
My dad had passed away unexpectedly with no insurance, my mom had been a homemaker her entire life.

Thank God I was in California then.
I collected on my dads SS, my mom found a job and we made it.

I graduated college and worked as a Radiologic Technologist for 43 years.

In today's world this would not have happened.

[KamaAina]

3. College in California today is a far cry from free college in California in the 60s

Fees (they're technically not allowed to charge tuition) have gone through the roof at UC, CSU, and even the community colleges. Thanks, Ahh-nuld! A coworker ended up sending her daughter to Western Washington University under a cross-enrollment plan between the public universities in several Western states.

[newfie11]

7. It's pathetic when one can go to Germany from America with free college

I tried to talk my grandson into going, they have classes in English I'm told.
He wasn't interested.
One year at SDSU and he's in dept over $14,000!

He switch to a vo tech 2 year school learning wind and solar energy application.

They have jobs waiting.

[Sissyk]

4. Even though Tennessee is a red state,

this is what happened. Work your local politicians, folks!

http://money.cnn.com/2015/09/18/pf/college/free-community-college-tennessee/

[pnwmom]

5. Homeless students who have been kicked out or are living in shelters

or sleeping on couches or with relatives because of abusive parents can qualify for Federal aid based on their income alone. They can qualify for aid as independent students and not have to have their parents info on FAFSA applications.

I'm only writing this because I'm not sure all students and their advisors are aware of it -- universities often don't volunteer this (UW doesn't mention it on their website), but the FAFSA forms do allow exceptions if you can document the abuse. If you know someone in this situation, there is help out there.

The student who lives with us was able to document her situation with letters from a teacher and from me. She did't have any legal documents proving it, but our letters and her statement were enough.

She didn't need to ask for housing aid because she's living with us, but her aid would have covered that in full as well.

This is a place that helped advise her.

www.seattleeducationaccess.org

[LiberalEsto]

6. In the early 70s, one of my fellow students camped in some nearby woods

and came into a dorm to shower. I don't recall what he did when the NJ winter set in. He couldn't afford the room and board expense, and college was relatively inexpensive back then.