Students endure the face-reddening frustration of navigating the financial aid process in exchange for the desperately needed, but dreadfully looming cloud of debt in the back of their minds.
Financial aid for Summer Session 2010 finally came to me after three online forms, two visits to the financial aid office, four phone calls, eight weeks and two summer session finals — even though I applied for funds on the first day submissions were accepted.
Help from the U.S. Senate is on the way. The Student Aid & Fiscal Responsibility Act, passed this spring and implemented for the 2010-11 school year, will extensively revise and simplify the financial aid process.
Edie Irons, spokeswoman for the Project on Student Debt, said this large investment represents “a historic change” in higher education, in an interview with BusinessWeek.
Though universities seem to be enforcing all mandated changes, WSU has not yet illuminated these revisions for students.
The primary change put into action by the bill is termination of private banks as the source for student loans. All student loans will now be administered and provided by federal banks such as Sallie Mae.
According to BusinessWeek, this will save the government $60 million in private bank fees. These funds can be redirected to students by lowering interest rates and boosting Pell Grant availability. Such changes also give legislators greater control of financial aid, creating a more effective and transparent process.
Other changes include a simpler FAFSA online form, which will hopefully simplify the loan application process. Most of the steps can now be completed online, but this makes asking for assistance more difficult, and mistakes seem to take a lot longer to catch with online submission. If the process is moved entirely to the Internet, online or phone assistance must also be made accessible.
While education has received significant attention on a federal level, state support for public colleges and universities has dropped 30 percent, and another $3 billion in cuts is expected for next year’s budget. Students must push the prioritization of higher education before these cuts are made.
A committee assembled by Gov. Chris Gregoire will host public hearings regarding budget prioritization in Washington state throughout July. If students do not attend these hearings, the assumption that young adults do not care about budget issues, or legislation, will be reinforced.
We are the representative group for this issue. If we do not make ourselves heard, no one will.
Visit www.wastudents.org/about/wastudents.html to find a hearing near you, and sign up for an e-mail reminder to attend.