A proposal from President Bush’s administration to reallocate federal student funding threatens to severely deplete financial aid funding for New England schools, especially here in Maine. The bill, titled “Fair Share Legislation,” would favor many newer schools in the Southwest, taking tens of millions of dollars away from New England schools.
The bill would take away 52 percent of Maine’s federal aid, mainly impacting the UMS system. The UMaine System would see a 66 percent total loss in funding for federal work-study jobs, Perkins loans and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants. If the bill goes through, USM’s Vice President of Enrollment Management Rosa Redonnett said, its effects would be devastating to our schools. “(This bill) severely impacts our system,” she said. “We’re going to have to start thinking about how to replace the dollars.”
USM’s total loss would be upwards of 76 percent, tumbling from a $2.9 million pool, down to just $700,000. The University of Maine in Orono currently receives $3.5 million a year in aid, and their share would be cut by 61 percent. The campuses in Fort Kent, Machias and Presque Isle will see an even more dramatic drop in their aid, while private institutions such as Bates, Bowdoin or Colby – schools which have a lower percentage of low-income students – will see a 31 percent cut.
New England would see such dramatic losses because under the current system, schools in this region receive more aid per student than schools in other parts of the country. The revision is part of a reauthorization of the 1965 Higher Education Act and is leaving schools in separate regions fighting for their share of the $1.8 billion in financial aid money the government shells out every year.
The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators is pushing for a proposal that by 2009 would give schools with a higher number of low-income students more money. It would also phase out guarantees that schools that have been around for a longer period of time than many others would get a certain amount of money.
“It just doesn’t make sense,” remarked Peggy Crawford, University of Maine’s director of financial aid. “To take one pie and make the slices smaller just doesn’t make sense,” she continued. “We need to make the pie bigger.”
According to USM Financial Aid Director Keith Dubois, 8,245 USM students received aid in the 2003-04 award year. Of those students, 2,238 (27 percent) received Supplemental Grants and about 1,300 (16 percent) received work-study. This year as a whole, USM students received $1,379,951 in Supplemental Grants and $1,526,544 in federal work-study money. If the bill passes, these two programs would be the ones feeling the brunt of the loss. Students receiving aid from these programs would ultimately lose $1,126,000 in grants and $1,111,761 in work-study money. “Because 80 percent of USM students receive aid, this could potentially severely impact our enrollment,” said Redonnett. “We have no ready source for dollar to dollar reimbursement of these funds,” she continued.
“It hasn’t come to the floor as a bill yet, but Congress is working on it,” said Dubois. “The Senate committee has a strong representation for Northeast schools, but anything can happen in the world of politics. We will try to let students know what’s going on.”
Because the bill has to be brought to the Senate floor, there is no real timetable for its discussion.
“This issue has been on the table many times before, and we thought it was gone for good,” said Crawford. “It has only surfaced again just recently.” Crawford maintains that it is important for students to be aware of the situation, not alarmed.
“I have run into many students who are worried they are not going to be able to attend school anymore. Students need not be alarmed about this issue, but know of the potential situation they face.” She is also confident that New England’s strong representation in the Senate committee will produce a favorable solution. “Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins both have strong voices in the senate. We are counting on them and Ted Kennedy to keep our system afloat.”
Crawford sums up her reasoning by stating “as administrators and students, we need to have a plan in place and to approach it in a way that would help us continue to receive our fair share of aid.” She places the responsibility on the Bush administration: “The bottom line is we need more money in the system.”
Even though the bill, if passed, will be phased in at a rate of 20 percent per year over the next five years, students currently attending USM still have their concerns. “It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” said Steve Beams, senior health fitness major and business minor. “Fortunately, I’m graduating because I definitely couldn’t make it up myself. I feel terrible for those who are going to be affected by it.”
Joe Bilancieri can be contacted at [email protected]