On Thursday, President Bush
proposed changes to the Pell Grant program that would increase the maximum Pell
award by 2.5 percent a year for the next five years, a move that student advocates
criticized for failing to even keep pace with inflation.
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The funding increase would fall even farther short of keeping pace with yearly
tuition increases, which topped 10.5 percent at public colleges last year, according
to The College Board. The President's plan would actually reduce the percentage
of tuition and fees that the maximum Pell award covers from 79 percent to 54
percent over the next five years for in-state students at four-year public colleges,
given projected tuition increases.
"By calling this a
plan to make college more affordable, President Bush isn't being honest with
America's students and families," said Kate Rube, higher education advocate
with the State Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs), "In reality, this
proposal would actually increase the gap between tuition and available student
aid, and put affordable higher education even farther out of reach for millions
of students."
Pell Grants, which assist
more than 5 million needy students nationwide, have declined in purchasing power
over the past three decades. Last year's (2003-04) maximum Pell scholarship
was worth nearly $800 less, when adjusted for inflation, than the maximum Pell
award in 1975-76.
"Nearly half a million
qualified high school students forego college each year because of the cost,
and millions more take on huge amounts of debt to pursue higher education,"
said Rube. "Rather than turning the tide, the President's proposal keeps
us on the same downhill path."
During his first campaign, President Bush stated that he would increase the
maximum Pell Grant to $5,100 by the end of his first term. The proposed Pell
Grant changes would fall $550 short of that amount by 2010.
The President's proposal
would also fund a multibillion dollar shortfall that currently exists in the
Pell program, which student advocates said is a positive step to keep the program's
books balanced. "But covering checks that have already been written does
nothing to help students and their families today," said Rube.
Over the last year, tuition
at the average public college has increased by 10.5 percent, while the average
private institution's tuition has increased by 6 percent.
The State PIRGs' Higher Education Project is calling on Congress to prioritize
making college affordable by increasing funding for student aid and increasing
the maximum Pell Grant by $450 this year, to $4,500. "Providing for additional
student aid funding, which will result in more college graduates in our country,
is one of the best investments our federal government can make," said Rube.
