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Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Overhauling Federal Pell-Grant Program
A blue-ribbon panel is recommending an overhaul of the federal Pell-grant program. The Wall Street Journal reports, a panel of secondary educators says recipients' graduation and job success rates are too low. The Education Department handed out $354 billion in Pell Grants to more than 9 million college students last year. That's half again more than in 2009. Spending has nearly doubled. But only a quarter of students under 25 ever graduate. Only 3 percent of older students get their degrees. The panel will recommend narrowing the program and finding ways to boost the graduation rate.
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4 comments:
There are many abuses that occur in this program and guidelines definitely need to be changed. I know many students personally who got the grant for the full amount per semester just for signing up for 12 credits. After tuition and books, they received the balance of the grant to do with as they pleased. This "extra" $$ ranged from $700 to $1,800. The money was wasted on lots of play...not used for school expenses. Then at the end of the term they all either dropped out or flunked. Oh, and they got to do it again for the next semester while on academic probation. Tell me this is fair to the students who work their way through...or parents who struggle to manage it all. Better accounting of funds is needed....just another form of federal handout when not used as it was originally intended. It must be made fair and balanced for the deserving needy students who really want an education.
If you don't graduate or maintain a reasonable GPA, you should have to pay it back.
They also get to sell back the textbooks for another windfall. These books should be donated back since they weren't paid for in the beginning.
9:13 I've seen the same thing and agree. As a taxpayer, I don't have a problem helping people who can't pay for their education, but I need to know I'm getting "bang for my buck" so to speak.
I think any extra money after paying tuition and books should have to go back into the pool for someone else to use.
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