| University funding is an important
factor that students should consider when deciding which college
they should attend. Funding plays an integral role in the dispersal
of financial aid which is critical for many students entering universities.
There are many students who wouldn’t have the opportunity
to attend college without the help of financial aid. This paper
will first consider the role that technology plays in financial
aid offices and its affect on students seeking assistance in paying
for a higher education. Next, I will examine the policy of the The
Regents of the University of California regarding financial aid
for students. The paper will further address the role that Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s funding cuts have had on financial
aid from the viewpoints of the University of California President,
Robert C. Dynes, Lesli A. Maxwell from The Sacramento Bee, and from
the University of California students themselves. Each perspective
will provide insight into the role of university funding in financial
aid.
When students seek financial aid they expect
to speak to someone who can give them personalized attention to
help them achieve a higher education. In “Balancing
Technology and the Human Touch in Financial Aid,” Kathleen
Gibbons shows that this personalized attention is not always an
option for students in need. Gibbons describes,
By choice or by force, over the last few years
financial aid offices have become increasingly automated. This
is partly a result of electronic reporting requirements for schools
that receive federal funds, and also the explosion of software
tools that do everything from need analysis to packaging to entrance
and exit counseling.
Due to technology
and the universities’ need for federal funding, there has
been an increase in computer use for
financial aid and a decrease in personal attention. This transition
from personal contact to automation can be detrimental to students
seeking aid because often these students have particular needs and
situations which require special attention. Students want to feel
that they can talk to someone about their financial problems and
if they are denied the “human touch” these people may
feel isolated.
Although Gibbons does acknowledge that “technology
has improved and streamlined many of the computational and processing-related
tasks that financial aid administrators previously did by hand,”
she also stresses that this does not mean that we should forget
about the importance of human aspects in financial aid. Gibbons
states that
we should remember the fundamental, human
aspects of providing access to higher education and financial
aid services to students. Critical thinking, empathetic counseling,
and professional judgment may be enhanced by technology, but they
cannot be replaced by it.
When it comes to the important issue of getting
the funds for students to attend a university, it is important that
they are treated like human beings on an individual level rather
than just like another number in the computer. Finding a balance
between technology and personal attention is critical in helping
students achieve their dream of a higher education.
When trying to reach this dream of receiving
a college degree, many students research financial aid opportunities
by going directly to the source. In the case of students applying
to the University of California schools, this source would be “The
University of California Financial Aid Policy,” written by
the Regents of the University of California. On this official website,
the UC Regents discuss the criteria and policies for students who
need financial aid. The source of this aid is intended to be shared
by the University in partnership with the State of California. The
UC
Regents’ policy states that
The University’s goal is that the cost
of attending the University will be met through a combination
of the following: a manageable contribution from family resources,
based on the family’s financial strength; a manageable contribution
from the student in the form of loan and/or work; and grant support
from a combination of Federal, State, University, and private
sources.
The intention of this policy is for students
to pay for college with help from varying sources without relying
solely on the University or state to cover the expense. The policy
does seem reasonable for students to obtain financial aid in its
ideal form. However, with the recent funding cuts made by the California
government, and the budget cuts made by the universities themselves
UCLA Budget, there is more pressure
on students to find resources outside of the university and state.
This stress makes it difficult for many qualified students to attend
these universities because often their families cannot give any
substantial help in paying for college and the student cannot bear
the burden of paying the tuition on their own.
In a newsletter to the faculty and staff of
the University of California, on “Our
University,” the UC President, Robert C. Dynes responds
to Governor Schwarzenegger’s proposal for university funding
cuts for the 2004-2005 fiscal year. Dynes acknowledges that the
state faces a massive deficit and that the governor is forced to
make difficult decisions. However, he
think(s) it also is important for the public
to know that the cuts being proposed for UC, coming as they do on
top of deep previous budget cuts, will have a very real impact on
what this institution is able to accomplish for the people of California.
This “real impact” will certainly
hit the students applying to University of California schools who
need financial aid. The funding cuts will make it increasingly difficult
for qualified students of lower class status to attend UC universities.
Therefore, it becomes even more difficult for the Regents of the
University of California to carry out their policy regarding financial
aid.
Following the UC President’s newsletter
on the UC Regents’ official website, there is also an article
including the University’s full press release on the governor’s
budget proposal. In “Governor’s
Budget Proposal Cuts UC System,” the Regent’s office
discusses the impact that the cuts will have on the university.
“The budget proposes a major curtailment of financial aid
for UC students.” In fact, the proposal from the government
includes “a new fee revenue that UC directs to financial aid
from 33 percent to 20 percent.” This cut will greatly reduce
the number of lower-class and some middle-class students trying
to attend the UC schools. It is unjust that students from some middle
and certainly upper-classes will be able to attend the universities
when their lower-class counterparts will be unable to pay for their
higher education. Moreover, in addition to financial aid cuts, there
will be a ten percent cut in UC freshmen enrollment, a cut of five
percent in funding on faculty which will in turn affect class
size, an increase in student fees, and much more. Considering
the effects that this proposed plan will have on incoming students,
I don’t see how President Robert C. Dynes can say, “In
his State of the State speech, Gov. Schwarzenegger said he is optimistic
about the state’s future and wants to ‘expand the dream
of college’- which I think is very encouraging.” Instead
of being encouraged, the President along with the rest of the people
of California should be very concerned about the education of our
highly qualified and deserving students.
Lesli A. Maxwell from the Sacramento Bee also
comments on the consequences of the funding cuts to the UC system,
in her article “UC
regents get grim details of governor’s budget plan.”
Maxwell reflects the concern that many people have (or should have)
about the UC funding cuts. She reports that “The governor
is pushing to close the state’s $14.4 billion shortfall without
raising taxes and has asked the University of California and California
State University to raise fees, shrink enrollment and rein in financial
aid as part of the solution.” By not raising taxes, the governor
is ensuring that his voters (mostly middle to upper-class Republicans)
continue to support him, while his policies increase fees and take
away financial aid from college students who incidentally don’t
make up a large part of the voters in the state of California. The
governor is pandering to those who most likely will vote at the
expense of students who are trying to achieve a higher education.
Not everyone is sitting quietly while the governor
executes his plans. In his article for the Daily Bruin “UC
students petition university funding cuts,” UCLA student
Charles Proctor describes the student activism
that is taking place in response to the governor’s proposal.
He reports,
Several students and the University of California
Student’s Association, a system-wide lobbying organization,
brought a lawsuit against the Schwarzenegger administration, alleging
that millions of dollars in midyear cuts to the UC were made illegally.
The students are fighting the cuts because
Governor Schwarzenegger bypassed thestate
legislature when making this decision. This action is seen by these
petitioners as being illegal. The students who brought forth this
lawsuit further contend that these cuts will “restrict access
to higher education for minority students.” Because minorities
are overrepresented in the lower class, the university funding cuts
that will decrease financial aid will therefore have a drastic affect
on these students trying to attend UC schools. A college education
is so important for the future of young people that these cuts could
have devastating effects on many students’ lives. The action
that this specific group of students is taking to fight the governor’s
proposal shows the importance that unionization
of UC students can play in the future of higher education.
University funding and financial aid has a huge
impact on students’ lives across the country. The strain of
paying for college plays a particularly important role for students
in the state of California. The public universities in California
are unique in that they must now deal with Governor Schwarzenegger’s
recent funding cuts. In order for financial aid offices to better
serve the students of California, they will need to increase personalized
attention with those seeking financial help and most importantly,
they will need to fight against the governor’s proposed cuts
to financial aid. If we try to protect students’ access to
financial aid, we will be helping highly qualified and deserving
students achieve their dream of a higher education.
Related Links
Benderly, Beryl Lieff. “The State of
Public University Funding.” Next Wave Science
Magazine. 6 February 2004.
http://nextwave.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2004/02/04/8.
Daily Bruin Editorial (UCLA). “Education
is unfairly hit by the ‘war on drugs’.” The
Round Up: The Student Voice of New Mexico State University. 15 October
2001.
http://www.roundupnews.com/news/2001/10/15/Opinion/
Education.Is.Unfairly.hit.By.The.War.On.Drugs-127649.shtml.
Finaid Organization. “Federal and State
Student Financial Aid Programs.” 1 October
2003. http://www.ucop.edu/pathways/finaid/RC_GCS_FA.html#Cal.
Lesko, P.D. “Success Versus Access in
Higher Education.” Adjunct Nation.
January/February 2004.
http://www.adjunctnation.com/magazine/article/?id_article=335.
Simons, Dolph C. Jr. “Proposed index could
offer guidance on university funding.”
Lawrence Journal-World. 25 August 2001.
http://www.ljworld.com/section/saturdaycolumn/storypr/63899. |