Remember Bush claimed he had increased money for Pell grants? He did.

[bigtree]

But he also but allowed a procedural change that would cut - and in some cases eliminate - grant eligibility for as many as 1 million students:

Pell Grant Change in Congress Could Affect Eligibility for Many Low-Income Students

By Justin Pope The Associated Press
Published: Nov 23, 2004
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBK4XE9W1E.html

Congress is again adding hundreds of millions of new dollars to the Pell Grant program for low-income college students, but it's also allowing a procedural change that would cut - and in some cases eliminate - grant eligibility for as many as 1 million students.
The spending bill passed by Congress last weekend increases funding for Pell Grants, the main federal form of college aid for poor students, by $458 million to about $12.4 billion, though that figure could be ultimately trimmed back slightly.

>>>>Meanwhile, Congress declined last weekend to block the Education Department from updating tax deduction tables used to calculate aid eligibility - a move that angered Democrats and some higher education advocates.

If the Education Department updates the tables, it would cause about 1 million prospective Pell Grant recipients to have their eligibility reduced by an average of $300, according to Brian Fitzgerald, staff director of the Advisory Committee on Financial Assistance, which advises Congress. The update would save the Pell program about $300 million annually.

The impact would be felt largely by students from families earning between $35,000 and $40,000, Fitzgerald said. Poorer families don't generally benefit from the deductions, and more wealthy ones don't typically qualify for Pells.

"The biggest impact will be on low-income students hoping to go to college," Hartle said. "Ninety percent of Pell Grant recipients have incomes below $40,000, so that's who's going to get squeezed here."


Student aid information: http://studentaid.ed.gov

[Claire Beth]

1. this administration is so corrupt n/t

[buckettgirl]

2. I have already been affected by this

They changed the tax tables either last year or the year before...

Our gross income for 2003 was on $19000 between me and my husband.
For the 04/05 school year I was only eligible for $1600 from the Pell grant. It is disbursed $800 in the fall and $800 in the spring... That does me no good. My tuition this fall was $1643.90; and my books ran at $695 - yes, just for fall semester. I got a decent sized Federal Perkins Loan, $2800. I hope that I continue to get the perkins loan because I can have it cancelled - I will be a nurse, so after working x amount of years in that field, it will cancel all of the loan, no repayment.
As long as I can still get student loans, I'll be alright, and once I am accepted into the nursing program, I will be eligible for many, many nursing scholarships as well.
Speaking of scholarships, I have noticed that it is VERY difficult for a non-traditional student to get them... I have been turned down 2 years in a row for ALL the scholarships I applied for, and I have a 4.0 GPA.

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Bastards.

[cattleman22]

4. Bush made the program more progressive?

Let me get this straight. Bush increased the amount of money for Pell grants and then he also made sure that more of the money went to the poorest of the students? That seems very out of character for him.

[tabasco]

6. Maybe re-read the article.

"The update would save the Pell program about $300 million annually."

That's money not going to students that need it. Doesn't seem too progressive to me.

[bigtree]

7. This is a prime example of how Bush was able to use the increase language

to convince folks that he was improving the program. He was called on the misleading assertion almost immediately after he made the statement, but by then the damage was already done. There will always be a substantial amount of folks who will buy the lie and not bother to investigate the truth. Wishful thinking on their part perhaps?

First, in the article, it mentions that the amount of the increase in funds would be immediately absorbed by the demand. Also skyrocketing jumps in tuition costs makes the funding increases meaningless:

College Tuition Has Increased 46 percent Since Bush Took Office, Largest Four Year Increase on Record. A new College Board report shows that college tuition has increased by 46 percent since fall 2000 for public four-year colleges and universities. Only a year after a record 14 percent increase, colleges raised tuition by another 10.5 percent. Even after controlling for inflation, it is the largest four-year increase on record. (College Board, 10/19/04; Chronicle of Higher Education, 10/31/04)

Families Squeezed by $1,624 Increase, $487 Just in the Last Year. Public four-year colleges have increased tuition by $1,624 since fall 2000, including a $487 in the last year alone. (College Board, 10/19/04)

Grant Aid Does Not Keep Up With Tuition. College Board report on trends in financial aid shows that while college tuition increased by $1,624 from 2000 to 2004, the combination of state grant and Pell Grant aid has only increased by $631 per student during that period, leaving a $993 gap between tuition increases and aid increases. (College Board, 10/19/04)

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=38408


Also:

Bush Eliminates Capital Contributions to the Low-Income Loan Program. Bush's 2005 budget eliminates capital contributions to the Perkins Loan Program, cutting funding for that program by $100 million. Perkins provides low-income students with low- interest loans. (Budget of the United States 2005, www.ed.gov)

buckettgirl is one of the fortunate ones who has obtained this reduced Perkins Loan.


Further:

Bush Broke His 2000 Campaign Pledge on Pell Grants

Latest Bush Budget Again Fails to Meet Campaign Promise to Increase Maximum Pell Grant Award. During the 2000 Presidential campaign, Bush promised to increase the maximum Pell Grant award- a critical source of educational support for low-income and minority students-to $5,100. Yet his 2005 budget is the third in a row that has refused to increase the value above the current $4,050. And Bush has fought Pell Grant increases at every turn, even threatening to veto legislation that increased the maximum grant.

Bush and GOP Allies Threatening Variety of Cuts to Financial Aid
Bush Proposes Cutting or Freezing Key Financial Aid Programs. Bush's 2005 budget eliminates the $66.2 million Leveraging Education Assistance Partnerships (LEAP) program, which offers an enormous bang for the buck in leveraging state financial aid dollars, especially for students from low-income families. Bush's 2005 budget also eliminates capital contributions for the Perkins Loans program and cuts overall funding by $101 million (60.3 percent) from the amount necessary to maintain purchasing power. Perkins Loans are need-based loans with a low 5 percent interest rate.

Republicans Considering Plan that Would Double Interest Payments on Student Loans. House Republicans are considering adding a provision to the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act to switch student loans from fixed to variable interest rates, meaning higher payments for millions of college graduates over the next few years. According to Henry Howard, President of the U.S. Education Finance Group, students could ultimately wind up paying twice as much in interest payments under the proposal as they pay now.

Bush Makes Deep Cuts in Community College and Vocational Support
Bush Cuts Employment Training By $151 Million. Bush's 2005 budget combines four employment training programs (adult training dislocated worker activities, employment service state grants, and grants to states for reemployment services) into a single block grant totaling $3 billion, a reduction of $151 million from the programs' funding in FY 2004. And Bush's 2005 budget combines all vocational education programs into a single block grant totaling $1 billion, cutting the overall allocation by $316 million (23.8 percent) from the 2004 level.

Community Colleges Reject Bush's New Budget. The American Association of Community Colleges describes the new Bush budget as inadequate, saying: "Although the budget has a few bright spots, it freezes or cuts many programs that are essential for community colleges and their students. . . The Administration's budget threatens college access for millions of Americans, and it undermines the quality of academic and technical programs responsible for training a workforce that increasingly requires postsecondary education."

http://www.democrats.org/specialreports/highered/

[buckettgirl]

8. Its things like this that make that offer from the Navy sound good...

I went back to school so we wouldn't have to be poor. Now we have to be poor so I can get money for school. Oh the irony!
If this kind of stuff keeps up, I don't know if I'll make it to my graduation date (May 07).
The navy wants me to be a nurse and they will give me money to finish school. I won't take that offer unless it is the only way I can guarantee my education. I guess I'll know when I fill out my 05/06 FAFSA.
Its like everything that has been done for the good of the people is being burned alive. :mad: :puke: :argh: :scared: :scared:

[genieroze]

5. More doublespeak

from Bushco.

[elperromagico]

9. Kerry said that in the debate. Pity college kids didn't listen,

and get their asses out to vote in something more than their usual anemic percentage.

[bigtree]

10. Folks always assume that the poor aren't them

Not so these days. We're all being impoverished by the policies of this administration. Reminds me of Reagan's admonition that we 'pull ourselves up by our bootstraps', ignoring the fact that the only ones who could do that are folks who have boots to pull on.