Warren, Sanders Call For Expanding Food Aid To College Students
By Elissa Nadworny
May 11, 2021
Democrats in the House and Senate are introducing legislation Tuesday that would make pandemic-related food benefits for college students permanent. The push is being led by Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent.
In the December relief package, Congress increased the number of low-income college students eligible for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for the duration of the pandemic. That included students who are eligible for work study, have an expected family contribution of zero dollars, or qualify for a maximum Pell Grant on their federal financial aid form. According to The Century Foundation, this expansion affects about 3 million college students.
Muskegon Community College awards more pandemic relief funds to students
Muskegon Community College
and last updated 2021-04-30 10:40:29-04
MUSKEGON, Mich. â Muskegon Community College will distribute an additional $120,125 to 450 qualified students beginning in May through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund.
Similar to the CARES Act, a portion of this funding is intended to provide emergency financial aid grants to students whose lives have been disrupted by the pandemic, according to a news release Friday.
This newest wave of funds will be disbursed through a request process in which students identified factors that demonstrated exceptional financial need related to the pandemic.
College tuitions are negotiable. For the past 20 years, colleges have discreetly offered discounts, when pressed or motivated to attract certain students. Competition among colleges in recent years has increased the practice of discounting significantly, and the size of discounts is greater than ever.
Covid has of course, accelerated the trend. To maintain enrollment numbers, public, state run colleges have increased discounting through what is referred to as ‘institutional aid’ while many private non-profit colleges are now discounting tuitions by more than 50%.
Tuitions at state colleges can run up to $20,000, while private colleges are topping out at $80,000. Full price is also referred to as ‘sticker price’, though less than 10% of families ever pay that full amount. Various forms of ‘aid’ are available and can reduce tuition very significantly, so every parent should absolutely find out what forms of aid will be available to them. More on that later. Scholarships