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Wilkes Community College financial aid officers will join college financial aid specialists across the state in offering financial aid assistance on Saturday, Feb. 18, to help high school seniors and families complete and submit their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) forms online. At Wilkes Community College, assistance will be offered in Lowe’s Hall rooms 1705 and 1706. There will be free FAFSA Day programs in all 100 counties with most sites open from 9 a.m. until noon.

Completing the FAFSA form is a requirement to be considered for all federal and most state financial aid for college, including scholarships and grants. This year’s statewide FAFSA Day is sponsored by College Foundation of North Carolina, the North Carolina Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and State Employees’ Credit Union.

Pre-registration is strongly encouraged. To pre-register at Wilkes Community College, contact Vickie Call, director of Financial Aid, at 336-838-6146.

More than 300 sites will be available, including campus sites and State Employees’ Credit Union branches. The Credit Union can assist SECU members in any of its branch locations; however, in counties where there are no campus sites, the Credit Union can serve members and non-members. A list of all locations and registration is available at www.CFNC.org/FAFSAday or by calling 866-866-CFNC toll-free.

To be fully prepared to complete the FAFSA on Feb. 18, participants should either file their 2011 federal taxes in advance or bring the following items: both the student’s and parents’ federal 1040 tax forms for 2011 (or W-2 forms and other income and asset documents if completed tax forms are not available); the student’s and one parent’s Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) obtained in advance from the U.S. Department of Education website, www.pin.ed.gov; and a FAFSA on the Web Worksheet with as much information entered as possible. The online Worksheet is available at www.fafsa.gov.

Wilkes Community College, a member of the North Carolina Community College System, is a public, two-year, open-door institution serving the people of Wilkes, Ashe and Alleghany counties and beyond.

In today’s Times, my colleague Tamar Lewin has a preview of an address that President Obama is expected to deliver at the University of Michigan on Friday morning in which he will call for an overhaul of crucial aspects of the federal financial aid system.

Specifically, the president will ask Congress to link the colleges’ eligibility for campus-based aid “to the institutions’ success in improving affordability and value for students,” Ms. Lewin writes. The proposal, which would require Congressional approval, would apply to Perkins loans, work-study jobs and supplemental grants for low-income students. The amount available for Perkins loans, Ms. Lewin writes, would grow by a factor of 8, to $8 billion, from the current $1 billion.

That increase could have a substantial impact on some students and families. Another proposal by the president is intended to make it easier for families to take the measure of the cost of various institutions. Ms. Lewin writes that the administration will seek to require colleges and universities “to offer a ‘shopping sheet’ that makes it easier to compare financial aid packages and — for the first time — compiling postgraduate earning and employment information to give students a better sense of what awaits them.”

As the president’s proposal begins to take shape, we’d like to begin a conversation on The Choice about it, and the larger issue of the cost of college and the spiraling rise in student loan debt. Please post your comments using the box below.

Meanwhile, what is a Perkins loan? Ms. Lewin provides this primer:

While Pell grants and Stafford loans are larger programs than the ones the administration wants to change, they are federally administered and can be used by students at any college. In contrast, the campus-based programs the administration is proposing to change are administered by individual schools, whose financial aid offices have substantial discretion. About 1,700 colleges and universities now offer Perkins loans, a number that would increase to more than 4,000 in the new proposal.

And how might the program change under the president’s proposal?

The officials said the current financial aid system rewards colleges for longevity in the program, and provides perverse incentives for keeping college costs high. Under their new proposal, they said, colleges would instead be rewarded for lower net tuition prices; restrained tuition growth; enrolling and graduating low-income students; and providing education and training that help graduates get jobs and repay their loans.

President Obama announced on Friday morning a new proposal to limit federal student loans for students going to schools not making an effort to curb costs.

“If you can’t stop tuition from going up, then the funding you get from taxpayers each year will go down,” Obama said, speaking of universities at-large, to students gathered at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. “We should push colleges to do better. We should hold them accountable if they don’t.”

If enacted, the pool for Perkins loans would increase from $1 billion to $8 billion, increasing the number of participating schools from 1,700 to 4,000. But the law would bar the loans from going to schools who fail to meet three criteria: keeping net tuition down, provide “good value” and serve needy students well.

“If that does not happen,” Secretary of Education Arne Duncan told CNN. “We’re going to invest less in those states or those local universities where they don’t have the best interest of the student at heart.”

The criteria remain vague. For example, the White House defines schools who serve needy students as those who are “enrolling and graduating relatively higher numbers of Pell-eligible students,” but no number is attached to the definition and it is unclear how a school could re-qualify for the loans once they are denied.

“Those kind of details would still need to be worked out,” said an administration official familiar with the proposal.

The proposal also provides incentives—not just the punishment of suspended grants—for schools who go the extra mile to meet cost and value standards.

“We want to put in place both incentives, carrots and sticks,” Duncan said on MSNBC.

The Department of Education would divvy up $1 billion in university funding to states who “revamp the structure of state financing.” States would compete for the funding, much like they do for Race to the Top funds for elementary and secondary schools. The extra money could ease the burden on public universities who have already raised their tuition to compensate for state budget cuts.

Obama will also announce a “scorecard” for students determining the value of their tuition dollars by school. All proposals but the scorecard will need Congressional approval.

The White House told the New York Times that the $7 billion boost in Perkins grants would not require a raise in taxes since the loans are repaid with interest.  

President Obama is announcing Friday morning a new proposal to limit federal student loans for students going to schools not making an effort to curb costs. There will be more details when he speaks at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

If enacted, the pool for Perkins loans would increase from $1 billion to $8 billion, increasing the number of participating schools from 1,700 to 4,000. But the law would bar the loans from going to schools who fail to meet three criteria: keeping net tuition down, provide “good value” and serve needy students well.

“If that does not happen,” Secretary of Education Arne Duncan told CNN. “We’re going to invest less in those states or those local universities where they don’t have the best interest of the student at heart.”

The criteria remain vague. For example, the White House defines schools who serve needy students as those who are “enrolling and graduating relatively higher numbers of Pell-eligible students,” but no number is attached to the definition and it is unclear how a school could re-qualify for the loans once they are denied.

“Those kind of details would still need to be worked out,” said an administration official familiar with the proposal.

The proposal also provides incentives—not just the punishment of suspended grants—for schools who go the extra mile to meet cost and value standards.

“We want to put in place both incentives, carrots and sticks,” Duncan said on MSNBC.

The Department of Education would divvy up $1 billion in university funding to states who “revamp the structure of state financing.” States would compete for the funding, much like they do for Race to the Top funds for elementary and secondary schools. The extra money could ease the burden on public universities who have already raised their tuition to compensate for state budget cuts.

Obama will also announce a “scorecard” for students determining the value of their tuition dollars by school. All proposals but the scorecard will need Congressional approval.

The White House told the New York Times that the $7 billion boost in Perkins grants would not require a raise in taxes since the loans are repaid with interest.  

Seniors at Pottsville Area High School were given information they will need in applying for college Thursday.

The 28 students in Howard Merrick’s government class listened to Tracy Miller, representative with Penn State Schuylkill’s financial aid office, describe the ins and outs of the many ways to pay for post-high school education.

“Financial aid is like a funnel. First come first serve to the financially needy,” she said. “Please don’t miss out on opportunities by not knowing your deadline.”

“It’s time to get started,” Merrick said. However, when Miller asked how many had applied for financial aid, all but three hands went up.

Merrick said Penn State has been informing the students about the process of applying for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, loans, scholarships and options available for five years.

Students who are interested in higher education can visit www.fafsa.gov to file their application and must select a personal identification number along with their parents. Applying is free.

“Don’t wait. I know some schools want that FAFSA completed in February,” Miller said.

A list of deadlines is on www.fafsa.ed.gov.

She urged students to submit additional documentation when requested in a timely manner.

In determining what college to attend, costs should be considered, both said.

Some think college might not be financially available to them, but that isn’t always the case, they said.

“Schuylkill County has one of the lowest populations of college graduates in the state,” Miller said.

“Our goal is to help you afford it and get and education and find a way to do that. Currently, student loan debt is our number one debt in this country. You can’t file bankruptcy. You will always owe your student loans, except for certain circumstances including death,” she said.

Katie Courtney, 17, a senior, called the presentation “helpful” She will attend Penn State and major in crime, law and justice.

For those who have not completed their FAFSA application, Penn State will host a evening for that, she said.

Held 6 p.m. Feb. 8 at Penn State, anyone applying to any school is invited to attend. Call 570-385-6244 to pre-register.

NEW BRITAIN – Tuition hikes combined with the lagging economy will make it harder than ever for many local students to pursue their dreams of a college education next year. The American Savings Foundation expects to help more than 400 students by awarding $700,000 in Robert T. Kenney Scholarships for the 2012-2013 academic year. The foundation announced that the time to apply is right now.

Robert T. Kenney Scholars are studying at two- and four-year colleges and universities across Connecticut and throughout the country. Scholarships are awarded primarily based on financial need, with consideration given to academic performance, community involvement, and other indications of a strong desire to achieve goals through education. Most Robert T. Kenney scholars will receive support from the foundation for all four years of college. Applicants must be residents of one of the 64 Connecticut towns that the foundation serves. High school seniors, current college students, and nontraditional adult students may apply.

“If you are a good student and a hard worker who wants to succeed, we encourage you to apply for this scholarship,” said David Davison, president and CEO of the American Savings Foundation. “We believe strongly in making a long-term investment in students who we think will become the future doers and leaders in our communities.”

The American Savings Foundation named its scholarship program in honor of Robert T. Kenney, the president and CEO of the American Savings Bank, who passed away early in 2011. Kenney and the foundation board created the scholarship program in 1996, which has since provided over $6.6 million in scholarship support to 1,479 students.

Applications may be submitted on the foundation’s website at www.asfdn.org. The website also has links to other area scholarship programs as well as resources for financial aid information.

The foundation accepts applications from residents of any of the following 64 Connecticut towns: Andover, Ashford, Avon, Barkhamsted, Beacon Falls, Berlin, Bethlehem, Bloomfield, Bolton, Bristol, Burlington, Canton, Chaplin, Chester, Clinton, Colebrook, Columbia, Coventry , Cromwell, Deep River , Durham, East Granby , East Hampton, East Hartford , Essex, Farmington, Glastonbury, Granby, Haddam, Hebron , Killingworth, Madison, Manchester, Mansfield, Marlborough , Meriden, Middlebury, Middletown, Naugatuck, New Britain, Newington, Old Saybrook, Oxford, Plainville , Portland, Prospect, Rocky Hill, Seymour, Simsbury, Southbury, Southington, Thomaston, Tolland, Torrington, Waterbury, Watertown, West Hartford, Westbrook, Wethersfield, Willington, Winchester, Windham, Wolcott, Woodbury.

For more information, students and parents can call the foundation at (860) 827-2556

NEW BRITAIN – Tuition hikes combined with the lagging economy will make it harder than ever for many local students to pursue their dreams of a college education next year. The American Savings Foundation expects to help more than 400 students by awarding $700,000 in Robert T. Kenney Scholarships for the 2012-2013 academic year. The foundation announced that the time to apply is right now.

Robert T. Kenney Scholars are studying at two- and four-year colleges and universities across Connecticut and throughout the country. Scholarships are awarded primarily based on financial need, with consideration given to academic performance, community involvement, and other indications of a strong desire to achieve goals through education. Most Robert T. Kenney scholars will receive support from the foundation for all four years of college. Applicants must be residents of one of the 64 Connecticut towns that the foundation serves. High school seniors, current college students, and nontraditional adult students may apply.

“If you are a good student and a hard worker who wants to succeed, we encourage you to apply for this scholarship,” said David Davison, president and CEO of the American Savings Foundation. “We believe strongly in making a long-term investment in students who we think will become the future doers and leaders in our communities.”

The American Savings Foundation named its scholarship program in honor of Robert T. Kenney, the president and CEO of the American Savings Bank, who passed away early in 2011. Kenney and the foundation board created the scholarship program in 1996, which has since provided over $6.6 million in scholarship support to 1,479 students.

Applications may be submitted on the foundation’s website at www.asfdn.org. The website also has links to other area scholarship programs as well as resources for financial aid information.

The foundation accepts applications from residents of any of the following 64 Connecticut towns: Andover, Ashford, Avon, Barkhamsted, Beacon Falls, Berlin, Bethlehem, Bloomfield, Bolton, Bristol, Burlington, Canton, Chaplin, Chester, Clinton, Colebrook, Columbia, Coventry , Cromwell, Deep River , Durham, East Granby , East Hampton, East Hartford , Essex, Farmington, Glastonbury, Granby, Haddam, Hebron , Killingworth, Madison, Manchester, Mansfield, Marlborough , Meriden, Middlebury, Middletown, Naugatuck, New Britain, Newington, Old Saybrook, Oxford, Plainville , Portland, Prospect, Rocky Hill, Seymour, Simsbury, Southbury, Southington, Thomaston, Tolland, Torrington, Waterbury, Watertown, West Hartford, Westbrook, Wethersfield, Willington, Winchester, Windham, Wolcott, Woodbury.

For more information, students and parents can call the foundation at (860) 827-2556

Area high school seniors and their families can receive free help applying for college financial aid this weekend during College Goal Sunday at Henderson Community College.

College Goal Sunday will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday in Room 309 of the Sullivan Technology Center on the HCC campus.

At College Goal Sunday, college financial aid professionals and counselors from area high schools will help students and families complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the form students must submit to receive federal and state student aid. Students who file the form before March 15 have the best chance of receiving funds.

The event is open to all Kentucky high school seniors and anyone wishing to apply for financial aid, regardless of where they plan to attend college.

Students are encouraged to attend College Goal Sunday with a parent or guardian. Students should bring their and their parents’ completed 2011 IRS 1040 tax return and any other 2011 income and benefits information.

If families haven’t completed their taxes, they should bring their 2010 IRS 1040 tax forms and the last paycheck stub from 2011 so financial aid professionals will be able to show them how to use estimated information and then give instructions on how to update their information.

All attendees will be eligible to enter into a drawing for a chance to win a $500 scholarship that can be used at any Kentucky college or university.

If inclement weather conditions exists, the event will be canceled. Check the HCC website at henderson.kctcs.edu or its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Henderson.Community.College for cancellation information Sunday.

The event is sponsored by the Kentucky Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and is funded by the Lumina Foundation for Education, the YMCA and KnowHow2GoKy.org.

For more information about College Goal Sunday, call the HCC Financial Aid Office at 831-9628 or the statewide helpline toll-free at 1-888-4-KASFA (1-888-452-7322).

Students like Monet Patrick are one of many University students who are filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as early as possible in order to get the most from the federal government for college aid.

“I fill out the FAFSA so I can get financial aid to help pay for college,” said Patrick, sophomore in LAS.

The Office of Student Financial Aid’s deadline for students to complete the FAFSA is March 15. Dan Mann, director of student financial aid, said the one program that he’s most concerned about is the Monetary Award Program (MAP grant). The MAP grant is given to students in Illinois who demonstrate great financial need.Mann said grants are becoming more competitive because more people in Illinois are applying and are becoming eligible for the grant.

“We still hope that if you meet our March 15 deadline date, you’ll still be in time for all the state and federal institution aid,” Mann said.

One reason the MAP Grant become a popular form of government aid is because families need more assistance because of the economy, he said. Also, community colleges have become better in educating their students in the importance of filling out the FAFSA early, Mann said.

“It’s a little bit of the entire population, but especially the community college population that’s applying earlier,” Mann said.

The University itself doesn’t have a lot of institutional aid to offer students to meet their needs, Mann said. Only the neediest students are covered by University funds, he added.

With students coming from all different kinds of financial backgrounds, the middle class students are the ones who have the most difficulty in receiving aid while lower income families are in the position to receive the most aid, Mann said.

“The middle (class) I think kind of struggle because they’re not always eligible for grant aid, where if they are eligible for grant aid, they’re not always eligible for the full amount,” Mann said.“We’re not seeing increases in that population because it’s harder and harder for families to find the funds to afford the University of Illinois.”

Mann said the typical financial background the University students come from is the upper class, who tend to receive no financial aid and take out some type of loan.

U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter held a FAFSA office hours via Twitter Thursday where parents and students could tweet in their questions and have them answered. Jane Glickman, Department of Education spokeswoman, said the Education Department is trying to reach out to people in all mediums in order to get their FAFSA concerns met.

“We do outreach in as many different ways as we can. Our goal is use all media available to reach our audiences and students,” Glickman said. “We have a lot of avenues to provide information to students.”

Monet Patrick comes from a low income family. Although much assistance can be given to someone from her background, her family feels more could be given from FASFA.

“I don’t think the FAFSA pays enough money because every semester we still end up struggling to pay the bills that slowly start to add up,” she said.

Students like Monet Patrick are one of many University students who are filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as early as possible in order to get the most from the federal government for college aid.

“I fill out the FAFSA so I can get financial aid to help pay for college,” said Patrick, sophomore in LAS.

The Office of Student Financial Aid’s deadline for students to complete the FAFSA is March 15. Dan Mann, director of student financial aid, said the one program that he’s most concerned about is the Monetary Award Program (MAP grant). The MAP grant is given to students in Illinois who demonstrate great financial need.Mann said grants are becoming more competitive because more people in Illinois are applying and are becoming eligible for the grant.

“We still hope that if you meet our March 15 deadline date, you’ll still be in time for all the state and federal institution aid,” Mann said.

One reason the MAP Grant become a popular form of government aid is because families need more assistance because of the economy, he said. Also, community colleges have become better in educating their students in the importance of filling out the FAFSA early, Mann said.

“It’s a little bit of the entire population, but especially the community college population that’s applying earlier,” Mann said.

The University itself doesn’t have a lot of institutional aid to offer students to meet their needs, Mann said. Only the neediest students are covered by University funds, he added.

With students coming from all different kinds of financial backgrounds, the middle class students are the ones who have the most difficulty in receiving aid while lower income families are in the position to receive the most aid, Mann said.

“The middle (class) I think kind of struggle because they’re not always eligible for grant aid, where if they are eligible for grant aid, they’re not always eligible for the full amount,” Mann said.“We’re not seeing increases in that population because it’s harder and harder for families to find the funds to afford the University of Illinois.”

Mann said the typical financial background the University students come from is the upper class, who tend to receive no financial aid and take out some type of loan.

U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter held a FAFSA office hours via Twitter Thursday where parents and students could tweet in their questions and have them answered. Jane Glickman, Department of Education spokeswoman, said the Education Department is trying to reach out to people in all mediums in order to get their FAFSA concerns met.

“We do outreach in as many different ways as we can. Our goal is use all media available to reach our audiences and students,” Glickman said. “We have a lot of avenues to provide information to students.”

Monet Patrick comes from a low income family. Although much assistance can be given to someone from her background, her family feels more could be given from FASFA.

“I don’t think the FAFSA pays enough money because every semester we still end up struggling to pay the bills that slowly start to add up,” she said.

By Tamar Lewin

THE NEW YORK TIMES

President Barack Obama will propose today a financial aid overhaul that for the first time would tie colleges’ eligibility for campus-based aid programs Perkins loans, work-study jobs and supplemental grants for low-income students to the institutions’ success in improving affordability and value, administration officials said.

Under the plan, which the president is expected to outline in a speech at the University of Michigan, the amount available for Perkins loans would grow to $8 billion, from the current $1 billion. The president also wants to create a $1 billion grant competition, along the lines of the Race for the Top program for elementary and secondary education, to reward states that take action to keep college costs down, and a separate $55 million competition for individual colleges that have increased their value and efficiency.

The administration also wants to give families clearer information about costs and quality, by requiring colleges and universities to offer a “shopping sheet” that makes it easier to compare financial aid packages and — for the first time — compiling post-graduate earning and employment information to give students a better sense of what awaits them.

These proposed changes would all require congressional approval.

With student-loan debt now outpacing credit-card debt — one rallying cry in the Occupy movement — the administration has for some time promised to address the issue, knowing its potency with voters in an election year. The president met privately with a group of college presidents in December and has been collecting examples of colleges that have kept their costs from spiraling upward.

In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, Obama turned up the heat, alluding to the plan without fleshing out details.

“Let me put colleges and universities on notice: If you can’t stop tuition from going up, the funding you get from taxpayers will go down,” he said.

Even without specifics, that raised hackles in higher-education circles.

“When we hear things like a shift in federal aid, it causes our antennas to go straight up,” said Molly Corbett Broad, president of the American Council on Education. “Anything that smacks of price controls is of great concern on many levels, especially at a time when states are cutting their budgets — and if the effect of this is to limit tuition, what else would you call it but price controls?”

Broad said that she and university presidents across the nation shared the president’s commitment to affordable higher education, but that it was not so easy to keep tuition down at a time when institutions must also absorb state budget cuts, increase enrollment and bolster financial aid for the growing number of families who need it.

Obama administration officials stressed that expanding the pool of money for Perkins loans would not require new tax dollars, since those loans are repaid with interest. But other parts of the president’s proposal — such as doubling the number of work-study jobs and keeping the interest rate on subsidized Stafford loans at the current 3.8 percent — could be expensive.