A ten-year freeze on Pell Grant funding could limit
student financial aid.
The freeze was proposed by the United States
House Budget Committee and would “freeze the maximum
Pell Grant at $5,775 for ten years,” according to
the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
“The grant amount actually increased from last
year to this year,” said Tyler Hayes from Central Oregon
Community College’s financial aid department.
“Under current law,
the maximum grant at
$5,775 per student per
year for the 2015/2016
school year is scheduled
to rise with inflation
to roughly $6,000 by
2017,” according to the
Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities.
“The Pell Grant program
is an important
resource,” said Kevin
Multop, director of financial
aid at COCC.
President Barack Obama would still have to approve
this proposal and, according to Multop, this is
unlikely.
“I can’t imagine our current president signing off
on any cuts,” said Multop. “These talks, they seem to
come up on a yearly basis. It seems like there is always
a lot of talk around cuts. You never know how
these things will turn out or what the house will end
up doing. If the proposal is to cap it, to keep it level for
ten years was approved, we would see that as a major
setback for our students.”

Will Nye | The Broadside
(Contact: [email protected])