Contact:
Kelly Layman
Executive Director of Communications
850-245-0466
Kelly.Layman@flbog.edu
News
02/06/2012
Statements Related to the President's Proposed Policy Changes to Federal Student Financial Aid
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—Feb. 6, 2012
STATEMENTS RELATED TO THE PRESIDENT’S PROPOSED POLICY CHANGES TO FEDERAL STUDENT FINANCIAL AID
BOARD OF GOVERNORS CHAIR DEAN COLSON OF MIAMI:
“With more than 325,000 university students in the State University System, affordability is a concern for all members of the Board of Governors – we want to help our current and future students, and the families who want their children to have that access to opportunity. The federal government’s Pell grants and other awards have changed substantially, and students are struggling under the weight of ever-increasing loans. Penalizing them now, especially when Florida is among the nation’s lowest tuition for public universities, would be a shame.”
BOARD OF GOVERNORS’ STUDENT MEMBER, MICHAEL LONG, A SOPHOMORE AT NEW COLLEGE IN SARASOTA:
“Federal financial aid is directed to the student and is not directed to the states, so while there are not many details out there yet about the Administration’s plan for this major change, all this appears to do is make it more difficult for eligible students to access a higher education. Many students would be shut out of accessing public institutions in Florida if this plan goes through—all while the Board of Governors is trying to increase access, not make it more difficult.”
STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM CHANCELLOR FRANK BROGAN:
"As I shared with U.S. Dept. of Education officials who were in Tallahassee following the President’s recent State of the Union speech, I appreciate the light that they are shining on the importance of public higher education in America and the competitive slip that America is experiencing globally—yet in a state like Florida, where tuition and fees are 45th-lowest in the nation, students here shouldn't face another hurdle to entering public universities. Withholding student federal aid—whether grants, loans or other programs—is not the answer. That is extremely unfair to students and families, especially in a state like Florida, where we are the most affordable by far when compared to our peer states at the other end of the ranking spectrum. In the end, students who pursue a university degree as their ticket to a successful future are the only ones hurt by a federal holdback to student financial aid, which they receive directly to budget for their overall costs.”
