Cal Grant Changes

Colleges & Universities A-Z Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
1

<p>Hey Cal Poly students and families, I need your moral support.</p>

<p>The new Senate Bill 70 has made cuts affecting previous Cal Grant B awards. If you don’t meet the income ceiling for Cal Grant B in your 2nd-final years, you have to await an entire year with $0 Cal Grant money, and reapply after one year. They do not automatically consider you for Cal Grant A. You have to wait an entire year with no assistance.</p>

<p>Did this happen to anyone else here? </p>

<p>See my post in the Financial Aid Forum for more info:</p>

<p>Cal Grant Senate Bill 70 Injustices </p>

<hr>

<p>Under the new Sentate Bill 70, if a previous Cal Grant B student goes over the income ceiling by even one dollar, they have to wait an entire year to reapply to the Cal Grant Program without grant money.</p>

<p>Example: 2011-12 Dependent student (received $1551 Cal Grant B 2010-11) from a family of four makes $42,300/yr = $0 Cal Grant award for 2011-12. (ceiling is $42,200) Can’t get revaluated for Cal Grant A–Must reapply for 2012-2013 to be considered for Cal Grant A or B skipping an entire year.</p>

<p>Dependent student from a family of four makes $80,200 = Full Cal Grant A awarded.</p>

<p>So a low income family of four could have had $35,000 income 1st year and $42,300 2nd year for a total of $77,300 for 2 years and only get the $1551 year Cal Grant B 1st year amount and $0 the 2nd year. And the family near the top of the income ceiling could have made $150,000+ for those 2 years, and receive the full Cal Grant A for those 2 years (which can total $20,000+ for 2 years).</p>

<p>This is a major negative loophole. I can understand that less Cal Grant money is available and cuts need to be made. But why not consider cutting the program from the higher income student families. The lower income previous Cal Grant B students must now wait an entire year with zero Cal Grant money.</p>

<p>I confirmed this with the Cal Grant Program information number and a CSU college financial aid office.</p>

2

<p>I was unaware of this.</p>

<p>My son is an incoming freshman and was awarded the Cal Grant. However, our income fluctuates year to year. Is it better to ask for Cal Grant A?</p>

<p>I am sorry if this ruling has negatively impacted your financial aid for 2011-2012.</p>

3

<p>Before this new senate bill, if you were eligible for Cal Grant B or A, you could accept Cal Grant B which normally awards only $1551 allowance for books and living expenses the first year, but in subsequent years provides $4884 in tuition award + $1551 in books and living expenses. Cal Poly, however, made up the missing 1st year tuition award as a SUG (State Univ. Grant) for Cal Grant B recipients. So in the first year, it was like getting the Cal Grant A and B. (the same as in would be for year 2 onward) The reasoning was the Cal Grant B student was the neediest of the needy.</p>

<p>The Senate Bill 70 bill’s intention, I believe, was to reduce the budget, of course, but still make awards for the neediest of the needy. The language of the bill is where the problems is. I found this appeal from the Cal.Assoc. of Student Fin.Aid Administrators to change the language. It is dated May 26, 2011, so I don’t know what, if anything, was done in response to the request.
[Community</a> Forum::CASFAA News and Council Updates::State Issues Letter regarding CalGrant changes (SB 70)](<a href=“http://casfaa.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_ccboard&view=postlist&forum=6&topic=21&Itemid=]Community”>http://casfaa.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_ccboard&view=postlist&forum=6&topic=21&Itemid=)</p>

<p>Not sure the link above will work, I’m new to posting here.</p>

<p>So, I think the best thing to do is get advice from a Cal Poly Financial Aid Advisor. Most likely they will tell you there is no way of knowing if the language of the bill will change, and as it stands now…If you go over the asset ceiling for Cal Grant B your second year, you will have to wait a year without any award, even though Cal Grant A students do not.</p>

4

<p>Oh, forgot to say thanks for your kind words. We fall in the gap between the B and the A.</p>

5

<p>heyitsmee</p>

<p>I want to thank you for your post. I checked my son’s award letter and it says that he was given Cal Grant A so for right now, it looks like everything is OK.</p>

<p>Good luck to you. I hope it works out.</p>

6

<p>same exact thing happened to me. Doesn’t make sense to me though, so since I am a returning student and I got the cal grant B last year and not the Cal grant A it means that I have no chance of getting the cal grant a this year. Im so worried, I come from a very low income family and I just got 8,000 dollars taken away from me just like that</p>

7

<p>Some Cal Poly Fin.Aid advisors are saying that they may award SUG (State University Grant) money to renewal F.A. students who got caught in this problem, if the state doesn’t fix the language of the bill. The amount would be the same as a Cal Grant A ($4,884). </p>

<p>Money is tight all around–so I’m not going to believe until I see it.</p>

8

<p>The 12% increase in tuition passed last week doesn’t help much either. </p>

<p>But Cal Poly is still an excellent value for a quality education compared with other public universities.</p>

<p>[Fee</a> Payment Schedule - Student Accounts - AFD - Cal Poly](<a href=“http://www.afd.calpoly.edu/Student_Accounts/payment_schedule_11_fall.asp]Fee”>http://www.afd.calpoly.edu/Student_Accounts/payment_schedule_11_fall.asp)</p>