Daily Aid 21: Financial aid cuts looming at state schools

Student Financial Aid News

Tufts University President Lawrence Bacow issued this memo:

One major potential impact of the downturn in the economy is on our financial aid budget. We guarantee to meet the full financial need of every undergraduate we admit. If unemployment rises, we can expect to see additional demand for financial aid from our current students as well as from those who will apply for admission to the class of 2013. We have a moral obligation to continue to meet the full need of all undergraduates currently enrolled at Tufts, and we will do so.

Commentary

President Bacow didn’t elaborate on any numbers about financial aid in the rest of the memo, but it was interesting to see the wording that Tufts will continue to meet the need of all currently enrolled students - leaving a little linguistic wiggle room for future students to not see full need met.

As we’ve discussed in the Coming Financial Aid Crisis, everything you see happening in the broader economy will find its way to financial aid eventually. Right now, states are warning that tax revenues are being disrupted by the economy, in some cases severely. New York State, with the loss of so many investment banks, faces an especially tough time ahead.

The Chronicle and comments in the Chronicle blog detail a list of states in trouble, imperiling their financial aid budgets, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Michigan, Rhode Island, and Tennessee. Massachusetts has issued warnings about the budget as well. If you’re a resident of these states or attend public schools in these states, anticipate cutbacks in financial aid, and plan accordingly.

Scholarship Update

William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fellowship for Minority Students

The Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program (NSPP) of the Aspen Institute in Washington, DC, offers the William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fellowship three times annually. The fellowship, which is based on academic excellence and need, is open to both undergraduate and graduate students of color. The Hearst Fellow serves as an intern with NSPP. Through this fellowship, NSPP seeks to introduce a diverse group of students to issues relating to philanthropy, volunteerism, and nonprofit organizations. Recipients may arrange with their colleges or universities to receive academic credit for this experience. The Aspen Institute’s Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program seeks to improve the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations and philanthropy through research, leadership, and communication initiatives.

Details at our free college scholarship search site.

News You Can Use

By now it should be apparent that the average person on the street isn’t getting a bailout. That said, there’s an absolutely fantastic piece on the Consumerist blog that falls into the must-read category. Call it the DIY bailout.

Read the Consumerist post on eliminating $14,000 in debt in 20 months.

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