Show Congress considers expanding grant eligibility Washington CPS GPS Students Students Students Stu Stu- dents soon may find more grants in their financial aid packages Higher education associations associations have been fighting to expand grant eligibility while simultaneously arguing that a long decade-long trend toward loan-based loan aid should end Their b battle will climax this fall when Congress rewrites the Higher Education Act the blueprint for all federal aid programs National student leaders say the battle can be won if if students are willing to join the fray It is going to be an incredibly incredibly incredibly in in- credibly tough battle and you need to call your congressmen congressmen congressmen con con- gressmen It said Selena Dong legislative director of the United States Student tion The House Education subcommittee led the reauthorization effort holding more than 45 hearings hearings hearings hear hear- ings during the past two years The subcommittee has finished its hearings and is expected to begin marking up the bill early this fall Markup Markup Markup Mark Mark- up is the crucial phase for all bills That's when con congressional congressional es representatives go over the bill section by section proposing g new rules to replace ones they do not agree with When the subcommittee finishes the toe House dary Education and Labor committee will examine the bill before it goes to the full House for debate Any section of the bill can be amended at any point in the process The Senate Sena e also will begin later this fall marking up its version of the Higher Education Education Education tion Act When the House and Senate pass their versions of the act a conference committee committee committee com com- will try to combine the two bills into one which must be approved by both houses Dong said this up mark-up process gives students a chance to fight for proposals they favor such as switching itching financial aid emphasis from loans to grants A lot of pe people say What difference does it make to call your congressman But a lot lotof lotof lotof of changes have to be made and congressmen do read their mail Dong said USSA the primary stu stu- stu- stu run dent-run lobbying organization tion has been pushing to expand Pell grant eligibility to families with incomes up to and to re-open re the Stafford loan program to all students regardless of in in- come It also wants to increase increase in in- crease rease Pell grant awards wards and to make them an entitlement which would protect them from budget cuts The group included these recommendations in in a a 25 page proposal that it submitted submitted submitted sub sub- to the subcommittee We want to make sure that middle income students get Pell grants and are eligible for Stafford loans Dong said We dont don't want to create a system where only the very poorest and the very richest students can go to college The Education Department Department Department Depart Depart- ment and the Bush administration administration administration ad ad- ministration are proposing more modest changes Their recommendations delivered to Congress earlier this summer summer summer sum sum- mer would expand the maximum maximum maximum maxi maxi- mum Pell grant ant from 2400 to but it would restrict the grants to to the neediest students The administration however however howver how how- ever ver wo would ld expand loan programs for middle-class middle stu stu- stu- stu dents The Stafford loan limit would go to for first- first and year second-year students and to for third- third fo fourth fourth- rth- rth and year fifth-year students Graduate students could get getup getup getup up to annually Also the limit for Supplemental Supplemental Supplemental Sup Sup- Loans for Students would increase to for undergraduates and for graduates The administration plan would create achieve achieve- ment scholarships for Pell grant recipients and it would expand outreach programs to low income e communities Dong said she believes many proposals which are favorable to students will make it into the bill Charles B. B Saunders a senior vice president with the American Council on Education Education Education tion said most lawmakers were looking for ways to help middle-class middle families afford college without taking out too many loans Where the punch comes is that the administration only favors grants for the neediest Saunders said The council has proposed raising the maximum Pell grant to and expanding expanding expanding expand expand- ing eligibility to families with incomes up to The American Association of University Students which represents more than student student student stu stu- stu- stu dent governments held its 1990 national conference in Washington DC D.C. when the reauthorization process began The participants lobbied lobbied lobbied lob lob- bied Congress for the day visiting members' members offices to tell them how important Increased Increased increased in In- creased financial aid was to the average student president Daniel Labovitz said the associations association's big push now Isto is isto isto to increase student power b by Y registering students to vote If they go out and vote then they av more chan chance e- e of getting listened to to Labovitz said If you dont don't vote then you are not really a constituent Labovitz said all students need to write their Saunders agreed that students students students stu stu- stu- stu dents need to make their opinions known Students in general need to monitor what the committees committees committees commit commit- tees are doing in both houses of Congress and express support support support sup sup- port H he said |