RICHMOND
Virginia officials need to do a better job promoting financial aid programs for college students in need and also should reward state universities if they improve student retention and graduation, the state agency that oversees higher education said Tuesday.
The two proposals were among several endorsed by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. They are part of a package of recommendations from a council committee established last year to look at keeping higher education affordable.
As state funding has been reduced in recent years, schools have raised tuition and fees, in turn making a college education seem more unattainable, according to the committee's report.
The recommendations are more of a philosophy for the agency than actions to be taken, said Kirsten Nelson, a spokeswoman for the council.
Chairman Whittington Clement said he wants to share the information with schools and community groups, which could also support the recommendations.
The report included a proposal - passed last year - that public institutions be required to dedicate 5 to 30 percent of tuition increases, depending on the school's circumstances, to need-based financial aid for in-state students.
The council also wants the state to develop a financial plan to address an imbalance in how Virginia funds college costs and what is expected of in-state students and their families.
"The state should work to reconcile the fact that, while it ranks comparatively high nationally in per capita income, it ranks comparatively low nationally - and has for some time - in state support per student," the report says.
Virginia received a grade of "F" for affordability in a recent study, "Measuring Up 2008," by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
The panel also supports creating regional "access" programs to better prepare high school students for college. The report highlighted several existing programs, such as the Career Coach program at various community colleges.
Locally, coaches from Tidewater Community College visit schools to help students apply to colleges, look for scholarships and answer questions about college or jobs after high school.
Denise Watson Batts, (757) 446-2504, denise.batts@pilotonline.com
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Community College
Community Colleges are a great way to either earn an applied associate (AA) degree and get to work in two years, or a transferable associate degree (called Associate of Arts and Science when I did it) to transfer to a four year college.
But, honestly, I think CC tuition in VA is way too high. I think our economy would be better served if it was more affordable in order to churn out more skilled workers or prepare people for four year degrees.
When I went to CC in TX back in the 89/91 (OK, so I am a dinosaur), it was $15 a credit!!!! Even today, it's only $41 for in-county residents, $76 for out of county, and $121 for out of state!!! I didn't need a student loan at all for my first two years of school.
The benefit to the community is an educated workforce/plenty of skilled labor available to fill jobs, making good money, buying houses, contibuting to the economy, and paying taxes. It is win-win.
oracle
I have to agree with you on the point about being screw ups before entering college. I'm 29 y/o seeking my 2nd degree and can say that I see a lot of ill-spent money walking through the campus day in and day out. Freshmen (mostly males as I have quietly observed) gaff off too much in class, skip class, don't do their required assignments, the list goes on. I won't even talk about the fraternity discussions I hear in the halls. Even in some of the male bathrooms, they still write on the walls! I don't receive any kind of FA other than my VA benefits. I pay out of pocket and know the value of my dollars, but these younger ones weren't taught that lesson. I'm of the opinion that students should enter college after having had some sort of eye-opening experience like the military, Peace Corps, etc. They need some sort of direction before entering college, otherwise they're just burning money.
If a blind lady can take a greyhound to class.....
TO DISPEL RUMORS...An AA degree has plenty of Gen Ed. req's as I had to take everything a BS requires but at a 1xx & 2xx level. Gen. Ed. req's are valuable to a degree because they ramp the student up for the rigors that Tech. studies require skills to accomplish. Remember, some students are 40 & 50 yrs. old and haven't been to school for 30+ years. JO53, you are SO right!!! It pays to be a screw-up before college. However, as a white man, I can personally attest to there being 100x more grants & scholarships for minorities if you just go to Barnes & Noble with a pen & paper and "research"!!! Teaching & Nursing programs have the biggest financial incentives for aid. Would you rather work for "the man" or BE "the man"? A college ed. provides the justification for an employer to pay you a higher salary. How expensive can college be if it allows you to triple your earning potential. It's expensive because if it were free or cheap, it would get treated like welfare does. College should NEVER be an entitlement. It should be earned!!!
Everyone cannot afford NOT to have a college education
To say that not everyone can afford a college education is a cop-out for a hand-out. Everyone cannot afford NOT to have a college education. I graduated TCC with my associates with a little under $10k in loans. However, I am making 4x the salary and now own a house, a nice car, and have benefits like sick leave and medical, vision, & dental! Also, I transferred to Liberty University with EVERY CREDIT I earned at TCC. That took 75 credits off my 120 credit requirement for a BS! When it is all said and done, I will only be $20k in debt for a BS! I'll graduate in just over a year from Liberty too. My salary will triple that in just a few years. I could have bought a car that would be junked by now or bought an education that allowed ME to control my own destiny. You can even get a college education in prison now! A college education is the best insurance policy to combat poverty which in turn naturally combats crime. Besides, if the states cannot give grants, the feds should fatten the Pell Grant!
Financial Burden
Community College tuition is about 1/3 the cost of 4-year college/university tuition. Students can complete the required "weeder" courses (English, History, Social Sciences, etc.) at a much less cost. Those (passing) credits transfer to almost any university in the country (not just in the state) to allow completion of Bachelor's degrees. Why would any parent strap their child with 4 years or more of student loans upon graduation when a more affordable alternative is available? Student loans cannot be discharged in Bankruptcy. Nor, can they be negotiated. You have them until paid in full. So, yeah, sure, lets add to the pressures of life of our children after college with student loan debt, no job and no experience….
Re:
"it's cheaper to take those courses I think at TCC and according to the TCC commercials, the credits transfer to all VA universities/colleges..."
Yeah, it's about 1/3rd of the price, and Virginia law mandates that it has to be transferable.
runmatt
I certainly agree with you! ODU is making me take some of those liberal arts classes despite my resume, but until that changes, it's cheaper to take those courses I think at TCC and according to the TCC commercials, the credits transfer to all VA universities/colleges...
Goldfinch
my son attends ODU. He is a freshmen or should I state 1st year student. He was not required to live on campus. In fact he lives at home and comutes back and forth to school. Don't know where you got your information but you need to get the facts straight before you accuse someone of fraud.
Students who don't want to
Students who don't want to take the general education courses have the option of going to community college and earning applied associate degrees. That is the whole point of an AA.
As the middle-class married two income parents of one college grad and two college bound children, I too find it pretty sad that our kids don't get any financial breaks. While we work hard and have some money saved for our kids' college educations, it isn't anywhere near enough to simply stroke checks for them to get through school. They will graduate with loan burdens because they and their parents have been responsible, where someone who has, or whose parents have, made bad decisions will not.
Check the facts
Goldfinch, you are simply wrong. NO STUDENT is required to live on campus at ODU.
idea
How about cutting General Education requirements in half. I don't remember the exact number but I had to take between 50-60 GenEd courses that included music appreciation, psychology, art among other things. This could eliminate a full year of required courses that serve no use to a business major, engineering major, etc. and save thoasands right off the bat.
And don't use the excuse that it makes for a more well rounded student, because I know who Vivaldi is doesn't make reconciling statement any easier.
college is a seller's market
already supported in a large way by our taxes. College isn't any kind of a solution to maybe forty percent (or higher) of the people sent there- the colleges like it, the banks love it.
All for many to flunk out, or just to apply for a run-of-the-mill job.
Tuition
Goldfinch, I have to say you must have an axe to grind with ODU. Parking is bad enough for commuters - imagine the parking problem if ODU went through with what you suggest...
Anyways - I did research on this topic for one of my classes. One of the facts I found was that tuition rates are linked to inflation rates (not to mention other overhead costs incurred). Higher education is just trying to stay ahead of the inflation curve. During the campaign season in Ohio, Obama mentioned a tax credit of about $4,000/year specifically for tuition (which may cover one semester of tuition at ODU (well, for a commuter like me, and possibly books...). Students need to know that higher education is at its very core a BUSINESS, and as such, business-related issues are just part of the package.
Housing Fraud on ODU Campus
The fact that ODU makes its freshmen reside in campus housing unless they are residents of Norfolk is ridicules. If students from Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, and Norfolk could commute to ODU and live with family it would save thousands of dollars per student in food and lodging costs. ODU insteads wants to line the pockets of the developers of University Village and at the same time run out of room to put students so they have to rent out hotel rooms for them.
Doesn't make sense
When I began college in 2001 I applied for financial aid but was declined. The reason given was that my parents made to much money. And what does this have to do with me? My whole life my parents told me there would not be any money for college, so from an early age I knew I would have to go at it alone. Now a graduate I am up to my ears in debt thanks to political correctness. Sometimes it doesn't pay to have rich white parents.
The wrong message
In searching for grants/funding for my daughter to attend college this fall, we believe the message these kids get is that "right is wrong" and "bad is good". If my daughter were an unwed mother then money for college is available. A situation, I'd construe as "bad". If my husband and I were divorced, she could get money. Staying together for 29 years is apparently a "bad" thing also. If she/we were homeless, if my husband was unemployed...if one of her parents was deceased...the list goes on.
At a college night we attended, my daughter asked, "So if my parents or I had totally screwed up our lives, then there would be plenty of money for me to attend college?" The Financial Aid lady replied, "Unfortunately, that is true."
College is for the wealthy
College affordability is an oxymoron, and it is nothing new. How about starting with the elimination of tenure, and investigate price gouging (book and supply costs).