A new bill, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, aims to “motivate students” to graduate by taking aim at Pell Grants.
The proposal, sponsored by Rep. Francis Rooney, Republican of Florida, and Rep. Ralph Norman, Republican of South Carolina, would compel students to repay Pell Grants — which, unlike loans, do not require repayment — if they did not complete their program within six years. The bill would apply to all students eligible for Pell Grants, including students at community colleges.
Another decision that doesn’t make sense since a lot of Trump voters benefit from Pell grants. Wouldn’t Republican lawmakers shoot themselves on the foot? Or are they doing it to spite Donald Trump and his voters (because they’re “establishment Republicans”??)
Florida’s state grants used to be granted for act 20 and are now reserved for a tiny sliver of Florida HS students due to the score requirement having been increased drastically (29, I think, for bright futures academic scholarship, and 26 for medallion, which is very partial tuition).
How does Rep Francis Rooney think his constituents will be able to afford college if his bill passes?
There is a sort of mindset saying that college is a privilege, not a right. I’ve also noticed a short-sighted resentment towards educated people, who don’t vote for their positions so they want to punish educational institutions. It makes Thanksgiving with the in-laws something we’re avoiding this year.
Why even both trying to educate poor kids at this rate? You’re never going anywhere in the GOP-created world so we might as well just get you working at walmart and getting on welfare at 5 years old instead of kindergarten.
My rep’s office just straight up lied to me when I called to oppose these student screw-overs. They told me that the “standard deduction” would offset everything.
I called them out, but I know as someone who used to work for a senator that they have a script that they’re required to follow and yelling at them won’t do anything.
Switch it around. Make the schools repay or face the prospect of not being eligible to receive future federal money. Too often, lower tiered schools are enrolling students that have no business being in college, Rather, they should be either in the work force or getting trade school certifications, from local community colleges.
Sickening. A reminder to decision-makers here: Most students at CCs and directionals are women. if you want low-income students to finish degree programs on time, they REALLY need access to comprehensive reproductive health care, including long-term reversible birth control they can only get through a costly doctor visit. Nothing slows down college completion like pregnancy and parenting. Make no mistake about who will be most hurt by this: low-income single moms trying to become nurses and paralegals and early childhood teachers, and their children.
It is not a right it is a privilege and a taxpayer funded grant. I think there ought to be payment after a set and rather lengthy period of time not finishing the degree…maybe 5-10 years after dropping out.
This bill and the tax bill make it look like the goal is to put college back to the pre-1950s state of mostly being a finishing school for the scions of wealth (confirming one’s inherited social position and reducing the opportunity to earn one’s social position through one’s own ability and effort), rather than the 1950s-1970s bipartisan idea of investing in the education of the people who will return the investment many times over in both greater economic productivity and the general benefits to society of having better educated people. Sad that people who think of the 1950s as an era of the US being great want to destroy the things that helped build the greatness during that era and want to bring back the aspects of that era that we said goodbye and good riddance to.
Non-traditional students may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of this bill, since they may attend off and on or sometimes part-time.
Which is why the grace period should be long…but I think it is ok to ask a student who received a Pell grant to repay it if the don’t finish their degree after some period of time.
https://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_chart_001.htm indicates that someone with some college but no degree does outearn someone with just a high school diploma by $64 per week or $3,328 per year. So even that has some economic value. Granted, it is of less economic value than completing an associates or bachelor’s degree, but it is not completely “wasted” in economic terms.
Momofthreeboys what about those who go back and finish after raising kids? Or those who take one class at a time due to famiky and eirkbisdues? I know one single mom who did that dnd finished in 17 years. The majority of college students are non- traditional.