The future looks bleak for many college students who rely on need-based financial aid to be able to attend school. Most affected may be the students at City Colleges of Chicago since the state slashed funding this year to the Monetary Assistance Program.
The future looks bleak for many college students who rely on need-based financial aid to be able to attend school. Most affected may be the students at City Colleges of Chicago since the state slashed funding this year to the Monetary Assistance Program.
In short, it means eligible students will receive financial aid from the state for the fall semester but come January, when the spring semester typically begins, students are on their own.
Illinois, faced with billions in debt, reduced the annual budget for the MAP grant to $198 million from $380 million. The reduction also meant the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, which oversees and administers state financial aid, had to stop processing applications in May, three months sooner than it did last year.
“Some students won’t go to school next semester and that’s a disaster,” Andrew Davis, executive director of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, told the Defender. “Quite frankly, I think they are getting a raw deal.”
Davis explained that lawmakers should have spared the MAP and looked elsewhere to balance the budget. He urges students and parents to contact their legislators to voice their opposition to the cuts to avoid the same thing from happening next year.
Nationally, the financial aid crisis is worse. About 620,000 more students applied for federal aid, such as the Pell grant, in the first quarter compared with last year, a jump of more than 25 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
And at least a dozen other states are reducing award sizes, eliminating grants and tightening eligibility guidelines because of a lack of money.
To apply for a MAP grant, a student or–when applicable–parent must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid administered by the U.S. Department of Education. The application is then shared with the ISAC who then determines if a student is eligible to receive state aid.
The maximum MAP grant is $4,968 and the minimum is $300, which is based on income and family size. The Pell grant will not be affected by state budget cuts so students will still receive that grant spring semester.
This year, 130,000 students were awarded state aid and 55,000 attend community colleges, according to state data.
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