The Triangle

Issue date: 2/6/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Brian Baer The Sacramento Bee

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and President Barack Obama are attempting to combat the economic hardships faced by students as the worsening economic climate begins to affect colleges and universities around the country.

The governor hopes to enact a plan that will make it easier for students to attend state and community colleges, according to Michael Race, director of the office of press and news communications in the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Race said the initiative for the Tuition Relief Act was to keep higher education an affordable option for families in Pennsylvania.

"We need to take steps to make college more affordable for Pennsylvanians, particularly those who may have been saving for college in recent years only to have those savings wiped out by the economic downturn," Race said.

The economic crisis currently gripping the nation has led to various budget cuts and program eliminations in the state budget. However, according to Race, Rendell hopes to finance the Tuition Relief Act with revenues generated by legalizing online video poker in Pennsylvania.

He said the new spending for tuition relief is also justified as an economic development tool since the ability to secure an affordable higher education will create an educated workforce that will allow the state to compete in the global economy and weather economic recessions.

However, the schools affected by Rendell's plan are restricted to local community colleges and state universities, such as West Chester University. State-related schools including Pennsylvania State University and Temple University will most likely not benefit from the governor's plan, Race said.

Private universities such as Drexel University and University of Pennsylvania also will not be affected by the governor's plan, according to Melissa Englund, assistant vice president of Enrollment Planning and Retention Services at Drexel University.

Drexel will not match any aid possibly generated by the governor's plan, but will continue with its lending and scholarship programs as usual.

"As always, we are seeking outside opportunities for financing that may be available to our students. We will also proceed with the yearly review process that gives recommendations to our students regarding their sources of financial aid," Englund said.

According to Englund, the average Drexel student, who has about $6,000 of loans will not likely receive any new aid. At the same time, loan-interest subsidies from the state will likely vanish, and the student will bear a 4.5 percent increase in tuition.

"While our sister schools have inconsistent hikes in tuition, 2 percent one year and 8 percent the next year, we think the steady increase of 4.5 percent over the past few years has been an achievement. The rate increase is stable and therefore fair for all of our students," Englund said.

She also said the tuition relief plan proposed by Rendell should not have any effect on new admissions to Drexel University.

"Students who were planning and really want to come to Drexel, I think, will still come to Drexel, even if the governor's plan is approved. Students who would already be coming from the community colleges may save some more money than they anticipated if the governor's plan is accepted," Englund said.

According to Englund, it is too soon to tell whether the governor's plan would affect transfer admissions from the community college system in the next few years.

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