Pell Grants going unused by students
The Federal Pell Grant program was formed to help finance college educations for low-income students, but it has been nearly impossible to determine the effectiveness of the grants reaching qualified candidates. A new report released in mid-April by Congress’s Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that many students are not taking the initiative to apply for the Pell Grant aid that so many are eligible to receive.
Pell Grants are a form of federal financial aid that functions like an entitlement program, guaranteeing a student up to $4,000 a year. Undergraduate students who apply through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid program (FAFSA) can qualify for the grant. Bill Witbrodt, director of Student Financial Services, explained that all eligible students are automatically considered for Pell Grants.
“If it is determined that the student is eligible for a Pell Grant, the awarding of the Pell happens automatically,” said Witbrodt. “So any student who applies for need-based financial aid and completes a FAFSA is automatically considered for a Pell Grant.”
Currently 493 University students receive Pell Grants. One Pell Grant recipient, senior Jennifer Simpson, said that she had no trouble receiving information about the program.
“I don’t think it’s poorly advertised,” said Simpson. “I found out about Pell Grants through FAFSA. When I applied this year, they said that I was approved for a Pell Grant. I just knew about it automatically.”
In 1999, however, over 850,000 students across the nation who were eligible to receive Pell Grants did not consider applying, according to the new GAO report.
As reported by the Chronicle of Higher Education, some student-aid experts are fearful that thousands of low-income students are not applying for college because they are not aware of federal programs, such as the Pell Grant, that could help them afford college.
In an effort to reduce the number of prospective freshmen who have not received instruction about the financial aid process, the University is alerting students across the country about their scholarship and loan options.
“We encourage students to apply for need-based financial aid in all the University publications that are mailed to prospective freshmen and transfer students,” said Witbrodt. “We also encourage students to apply for need-based financial aid in presentations to campus visitors and at ‘financial aid nights’ at local high schools. The admissions officers [also] encourage students to apply for need-based financial aid when they are visiting high schools throughout the United States.”
While individual colleges may be doing their best to spread the word about Pell Grants and other forms of financial assistance, the GAO recommended that the U.S. Department of Education come up with a plan to monitor how many eligible students participate in the Pell Grant program.
Current plans include a new national database that tracks student progress financially and academically. Congress is currently researching the feasibility of such a database.
While Congress looks for such innovative ways to increase awareness of the Pell Grant program, the Department of Education is reducing monetary awards for students in specific income brackets and removing others from the program altogether. The department recently updated its tax assessment system, which evaluates how much grant money low-income students are eligible for each year after taxes have been completed. Approximately 81,000 students will lose their Pell Grants, and about 35 percent of recipients will experience decreases in the amount of grant money they receive, according to a report released by the GAO last week. This is the first time in more than ten years that the Department of Education has updated its tax allowances. The GAO report also stated that the change will save the government around $250 million in the Pell Grant Program.
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