Bill would increase Bright Futures Reqs

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Florida
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<p>The</a> Independent Florida Alligator: News - Bill would increase Bright Futures requirements</p>

<p>Students with Bright Futures would have to take more credits to remain eligible and would have to pay for classes they dropped after the Drop/Add period if legislation introduced by Florida lawmakers passes this spring.</p>

<p>The legislation could also cost UF more than $100,000 a year to implement, said Karen Fooks, director of UF’s Student Financial Affairs.</p>

<p>Two identical bills have been filed in the Florida Senate and House of Representatives that would tweak Florida’s Bright Futures scholarship program, which pays tuition for about 73 percent of UF’s undergraduates and is funded by the Florida Lottery.</p>

<p>The bill would require students to take 24 credit hours a year, up from 12, in order to remain eligible for the scholarship.</p>

<p>The bill would also force students to reimburse Bright Futures for classes they drop after the Drop/Add period.</p>

<p>The bill, if passed, would go into effect July 1.</p>

<p>Rep. Kelli Stargel, who filed the bill in the House, said she wants to help protect Bright Futures, which has taken heat for giving scarce state funds to less–than–needy students.</p>

<p>Critics have dubbed it the “reverse Robin Hood program” and the “BMW fund.”</p>

<p>She said the Bright Futures won’t be saved by the bill alone, but she said it’s a start.</p>

<p>“It’s just anything we can do to help make it more efficient,” she said.</p>

<p>She said she’s looking for ways to save the state money during the budget crunch but didn’t know yet how much money the bill could save.</p>

<p>She said she got the idea for the bill from her daughter, who graduated from Florida State University two years ago. Her daughter was frustrated because other students were dropping classes to lighten their workload, she said.</p>

<p>“It was so they had more time to goof off and have fun, and it was basically costing the state money for them to do that,” she said.</p>

<p>She said the bill won’t affect students who use the scholarship responsibly and added that it includes exceptions for emergency situations.</p>

<p>If a student gets sick or injured and has to drop classes, they can get a waiver, she said.</p>

<p>But they would still have to make up the missed credits the next semester in order to earn the 24 credit hours required each year to keep the scholarship, Stargel said.</p>

<p>Fooks said she is concerned about the possible consequences of the bill on students and UF.</p>

<p>She estimated it would cost well over $100,000 a year to enforce the Drop/Add reimbursement policy. That includes possibly hiring two new staff members to process the paperwork, she said.</p>

<p>“It would be a very big deal,” she said.</p>

<p>She said that’s not counting the amount of money UF could lose from students who withdrew for a semester and decided not to return to UF because they couldn’t afford to pay for the classes out of pocket.</p>

<p>Students drop classes for all kinds of reasons, she said, and she’s worried the state may not give them waivers.</p>

<p>However, she said the bill might make students take dropping class more seriously.</p>

<p>“To the extent that students might not value their Bright Futures, it’s a good thing,” she said.</p>

<p>“Because we have heard students say that they can drop the semester because, you know, they weren’t paying for it anyway,” she said. “I think that this would be kind of a wake up call.”</p>

<p>But overall, she said she thinks the bill is too punitive and has asked UF to take an official stance against it.</p>

<p>Ben Wilkening, a UF political science senior, said he agrees with the intent of the bill.</p>

<p>“It makes sense. If you drop a class, the government shouldn’t have to pay for it,” he said.</p>

<p>But Anaelys Concepción, a UF animal biology junior, said she’s worried about being stuck with the bill for a class she had to drop for unexpected reasons.</p>

<p>“I would not know where to get the money from,” she said. “With the economy, there’s no jobs,” she said, “I would need to probably take out a loan.”</p>

<p>“I think they should just keep it the way it is. It’s been good so far,” she said.</p>

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<p>Sounds good to me! Freaking program cost the state $436 million last year. Keep in mind the original cost back in 1997 was only $70 million a year. Change it or lose it.... The finances just are not there.</p>

<p>Does</a> Florida?s Bright Futures program have a bright future itself? : South Lee : Naples Daily News</p>

<p>Also stop letting people with 970's on the SAT get a 75% free ride. Let's atleast set the standard to the national average, and not the bottom 35th percentile of all test takers. Why are we investing in kids who need remediation? I am sick of these hillbilly higher education policies that are driving the State University System into bankruptcy.</p>

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<p>Increased graduation rates!
This should help propel ALL of the Florida schools up in the rankings.</p>

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<p>Expect a reaction from the Greek Community "Boo Hoo" I can't pay for my used BMW. The truth is they never could afford it in the first place, and they want to act as if...</p>

<p>I am sick of this lower middle class entitlement that is not allowing UF to achieve excellence. I was in a college fraternity and I saw these Tier-4 people all the time.</p>

<p>Invest our Tax dollars in the people who need it! (ie: those who should be going to Top-25 Privates, but stay In-State for the sake of Bright Futures)</p>

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<li> bump -</li>
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