<p>Keil: I don’t remember mentioning Mercedes, but perhaps I did. At any rate, I stand with you on your side of the argument, though I don’t understand why there is an argument.</p>
<p>There seems to be free floating anger and hostility.</p>
<p>If I get the gist of what posters are saying, even though I work hard, two jobs, and my husband works, the fact that we have had reversals in his business that necessitated putting our college money (saved enough to send both through privates) back into the business means that:</p>
<p>I should know “my place” and take my available funds and send my kids to instate public colleges.</p>
<p>I am being somehow uppity or scamming or gaming the system because both kids excelled and did get FA at need-blind schools that allowed them to attend for just over the cost of the public when there was one attending and just under when there were two.</p>
<p>I don’t understand the reasoning here, since these were private funds extended by the colleges in question which did suit my children better than our instate publics.</p>
<p>In fact, I could argue that by doing this I saved the tax payers of NYS monies that could be made available to other students or could minimize the continual tuition increases at the public.</p>
<p>I certainly don’t see how my actions affect anyone negatively.</p>
<p>My kids and I certainly did not feel entitled to FA (see above about savings), and we were grateful for it. </p>
<p>There were schools that preferred to give money to needier students and those that didn’t feel my kids were worth the investment (kids got rejected at schools with much lower stats that ones where they were accepted.) So be it. Those schools made there choices.</p>
<p>I will always be thrilled that my H’s faux pas in his business did not cost his children the education they had been working toward for many years. And I feel especially grateful that each was accepted at their number one choice. Just worked out that way.</p>
<p>I would not disparage flagships, other state schools, CC’s, merit scholarships, outside scholarships in any way, nor would I disparage the student with wealthy grandparents who can pay his way.</p>
<p>I had back-up and contingency plans (some impractical like selling a kidney – a joke) and some more practical.</p>
<p>I do think in an ideal world each student would attend the school where s/he would learn the most about him/herself and about the world. As many posters point out, this isn’t an ideal world. Indeed. But I see no harm in trying to get as close to that standard as possible.</p>
<p>As for high school students and their logic, I am very impressed with the high students on this thread even though it is sometimes difficult to match their passion.</p>
<p>As for the comment that we have a sliding scale at publics now, at the CC I teach at the millionaires kids study at the same deeply discounted rate as the recent immigrant and the kid who has two parents in jail. The millionaire’s tuition does not begin to pay for his/her child’s education, and I have yet to hear why that isn’t reprehensible to posters who find FA for low income folks somehow unfair.</p>