New Pell grant requirements to affect thousands at VCU

Mark Robinson
Assistant News Editor

Thousands of VCU students may not qualify for federal Pell grants for the 2012-2013 school year because of legislation President Barack Obama signed into law in December.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act lowered the total family-combined-income level that guarantees a student a Pell grant from $30,000 to $23,000. It applies to all dependent students and independent students who have a dependent other than a spouse.

Additionally, the law lowered the maximum estimated family contribution for Pell grant eligibility from $5,373 in 2011-2012 to $4,995 for 2012-13, further limiting the number of students eligible for federal aid for the upcoming school year. The changes are effective July 1, 2012.

Shannon Bartlett, an economics major, is enrolled part time at VCU. With three semesters left to complete her degree, Bartlett quit her full-time job to qualify for Pell grants. But with the new lower income requirements, the job she works to pay her rent will disqualify her from Pell grant eligibility, which pays her tuition at VCU.

“It seems these new regulations target nontraditional, working students. Now that these new rules are in place, I’m not sure if I qualify to go to school next year,” Barlett said. “The extra 24 bucks I have after rent and bills sure isn’t going to get me there.”

Last year, 6,690 students at VCU received federal Pell grants, the second most in the commonwealth amongst four year institutions behind only ODU.

The total amount awarded to VCU students was nearly $27 million dollars, with the average award a little over $4,000, according to the State Council for Higher Education of Virginia website.

“This is going to be a nationally felt impact, not just VCU,” said Brenda Burke, director of financial aid at VCU. “This affects all students who are getting a Pell grant; the Department of Education is well aware of that. Higher education is going to be cut somehow. There’s no other way around it.”

Burke said she expects higher education funding to be cut more to balance President Obama’s recently proposed national budget. She urges students to get involved in the conversation about higher education funding, both in Richmond and Washington.

“Students, believe it or not, have a huge voice, a much stronger voice in this than they realize, because they are the ones who are ultimately going to be affected by it,” Burke said.

Efforts to offset the federal aid changes are being made in Virginia’s General Assembly.

Senate Bill 85, sponsored by Barbara A. Favola, a Democratic senator from Arlington, proposes broadening two-year college transfer grant eligibility for students who’s expected family contribution, determined by their FAFSA, is less than $12,000.

The bill crossed over into the House of Delegates on Monday and was referred to the Committee on Education. It was then referred to the Senate Committee on Appropriations on Wednesday.

The General Assembly will also determine how much money VCU will be budgeted for the 2012-2013 school year.

Each year, a specific dollar amount is budgeted to VCU for financial aid by the State Council for Higher Education of Virginia. This money is only used for financial aid and is separate from the money budgeted for construction or paying faculty salaries, Burke said.

Additional money endowed to the university by alumni is used to offer scholarships for students, but because VCU is a relatively young school, its endowment is more limited than other schools in Virginia, Burke said.

“If a student can’t qualify for private loans then they’re going to have to look for alternative funding. VCU cannot cover the entire cost. We’re not set up to do that,” Burke said.

Students affected by the Pell grant changes do have other avenues to acquire federal aid, including work study and subsidized and unsubsidized loans, Burke said.

In-state students are also eligible for state grants, which are awarded based on a student’s FAFSA, though credit hours and GPA are often considered too, Burke said. Departmental scholarships at VCU and third-party scholarships outside of the university are also options for students.