Washington trims Pell Grants: How will students pay fall tuition?

As students plan ahead for college next fall, it’s hard to know exactly how much aid they’ll receive.

The size of Pell Grants for millions of low- to moderate-income college students will be determined by the ongoing budget fight in Washington. The current stopgap resolution expires March 4, and the House passed a proposal Feb. 19 that, among cuts in other areas, would reduce Pell Grants by $5.7 billion for this fall. [Editor's note: The original version of this paragraph and the subhead above said $61 billion, which is the total amount of funding the entire budget bill cut.]

That would cut the average grant by $785, and would bring down the maximum grant by $845 dollars to $4,705.

The Senate hasn’t acted yet, and there’s talk of a government shutdown if Congress can’t cobble together a spending compromise.

But colleges have already started telling students how much aid they’ll receive, based on figures published Feb. 1 – as required by law – by the US Department of Education.

“Students and parents are in a very tough position right now. [They’re] being asked to make decisions based on financial aid information that might change,” says Justin Draeger, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

Students who depend on the grants should lobby the Senate to sustain full funding, says a new Facebook campaign, jointly organized by Mr. Draeger’s financial aid group, the US Student Association, and the US Public Interest Research Group. They worry that some students will put their college plans on hold, or will have to switch to a cheaper school, because of the uncertainty.

“Not many people in my area get the chance to go to college,” Lisa Drudy, a third-year college student in Tennessee, writes on the Facebook page. “I had just enough to get by, even resorting to a private loan. My family cannot afford to help me any more than they already have.”

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