Missouri Access grants cut by 22%
Matt Korn
Issue date: 9/9/09 Section: News
Students at Lindenwood University and across the state had their Access Missouri grants slashed by more than 20 percent this year.
The Missouri Department of Higher Education announced the cut late last month, and some students weren't aware of the action until contacted by a reporter.
The 22 percent decrease affects more than 1,400 Lindenwood students, some of whom received the maximum amount of $4,600 from the grant program last year. This year, the state trimmed the maximum amount for students at private colleges and universities to $3,590, representing $1,010 less.
Last year, students at public four-year colleges received a maximum of $2,150 a year.
"Economic health, along with a surge of eligible applicants, has caused this problem," Kathy Love said, public information officer of the higher education department.
Last February, the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives filed two bills that supported Gov. Jay Nixon's proposal to cap the grant amount for students at both public and private institutions at $2,850 a year.
The proposed bills worried students, their parents and college administrators. If passed and signed into law, the bills would have affected tens of thousands of students who rely on the grant.
The legislative session ended before the bills moved out of committees. The cut this year required no legislative action.
The program gives away $92 million a year in grants, but it's still not enough to cover the estimated 49,000 students who have applied for aid this year, compared with about 44,000 last year.
"The number of eligible applicants for the 2009-2010 academic year has increased significantly over last year, but the amount of money available has not," Commissioner of Higher Education Robert B. Stein said.
To be eligible for the grant, a student needs to meet a few requirements, including filling out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and having an expected family contribution (EFC) of less than $12,000.
Because of high unemployment rates, more students are meeting those requirements.
The state has no plans to tighten eligibility requirements despite the increase in applicants, said Leroy Wade, assistant commissioner of financial aid for the higher education department.
Lori Bode, director of financial aid at Lindenwood, remains optimistic despite the cuts.
"Back in May, the Department of Higher Education was estimating an even greater cut in funding than what was actually taken away," she said.
"Now we have to retool our original estimates to reflect [the actual] cuts."
She said she wasn't aware of any students not being able to attend Lindenwood because of the cuts.
Sophomore Tanner Lawrence said that he hasn't noticed any effect yet.
But, he said, "I'm hoping it doesn't affect me or my folks too bad when it comes time to pay the last bill."
The Missouri Legislature will be out of session until January 2010.
The Missouri Department of Higher Education announced the cut late last month, and some students weren't aware of the action until contacted by a reporter.
The 22 percent decrease affects more than 1,400 Lindenwood students, some of whom received the maximum amount of $4,600 from the grant program last year. This year, the state trimmed the maximum amount for students at private colleges and universities to $3,590, representing $1,010 less.
Last year, students at public four-year colleges received a maximum of $2,150 a year.
"Economic health, along with a surge of eligible applicants, has caused this problem," Kathy Love said, public information officer of the higher education department.
Last February, the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives filed two bills that supported Gov. Jay Nixon's proposal to cap the grant amount for students at both public and private institutions at $2,850 a year.
The proposed bills worried students, their parents and college administrators. If passed and signed into law, the bills would have affected tens of thousands of students who rely on the grant.
The legislative session ended before the bills moved out of committees. The cut this year required no legislative action.
The program gives away $92 million a year in grants, but it's still not enough to cover the estimated 49,000 students who have applied for aid this year, compared with about 44,000 last year.
"The number of eligible applicants for the 2009-2010 academic year has increased significantly over last year, but the amount of money available has not," Commissioner of Higher Education Robert B. Stein said.
To be eligible for the grant, a student needs to meet a few requirements, including filling out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and having an expected family contribution (EFC) of less than $12,000.
Because of high unemployment rates, more students are meeting those requirements.
The state has no plans to tighten eligibility requirements despite the increase in applicants, said Leroy Wade, assistant commissioner of financial aid for the higher education department.
Lori Bode, director of financial aid at Lindenwood, remains optimistic despite the cuts.
"Back in May, the Department of Higher Education was estimating an even greater cut in funding than what was actually taken away," she said.
"Now we have to retool our original estimates to reflect [the actual] cuts."
She said she wasn't aware of any students not being able to attend Lindenwood because of the cuts.
Sophomore Tanner Lawrence said that he hasn't noticed any effect yet.
But, he said, "I'm hoping it doesn't affect me or my folks too bad when it comes time to pay the last bill."
The Missouri Legislature will be out of session until January 2010.
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