OUR VIEW: Not the time to cut Pell Grants

Just as public higher education costs are rising, the U.S. Department of Education, under President Bush’s administration, announced in late December it was cutting federal aid to the Pell Grant program.

At least 7,500 USU students receive Pell Grant aid. Those who now receive the lowest amounts will almost certainly lose it in the coming year; those who receive a modest amount will be receiving the minimum amount next year – about $400 to $500.

Not only does this backfire on a promise Bush made in his last debate with former presidential candidate John Kerry, it hurts students all over the nation. The decrease in funding will cut off 90,000 students from receiving any kind of aid, and 1 million or more other students will receive lower amounts. In Utah especially, where a larger majority of students are married and trying to get through school than in other areas, this puts a bigger financial burden on students than is necessary.

The Department of Education says it is only doing what is legal, as tax brackets are supposed to be re-evaluated every year. Those brackets, which in turn, tell of who is eligible for aid, haven’t been updated for 15 years, but the department choose to update them now.

It seems a little too convenient for Bush to update these brackets and cut funding for students after four years of ignoring the once-a-year re-evaluation requirement, just six weeks after being re-elected and two months after promising the American people during a debate that he would “continue to expand Pell Grants to make sure that people have an opportunity to start their career with a college diploma.”

Obviously, with the current deficit, certain funding needs to be cut. But, cutting off lower- and middle-income people from college educations hardly seems the way to go.