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A Message from the Chancellor
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CUNY Student Financial Aid Initiative;
Board of Trustees Approves $10 Million Fund to Provide Financial Assistance.
Listen to the podcast.
The FY2010 State Adopted Budget agreed to by the Governor and New
York State Legislature calls for an increase of $71.0 million over
the current year for the City University of New York. State aid is
decreased by $44.6 million and offset with $115.6 million from
additional tuition and fee revenue, based on rate increases of 15%
($600) for resident full-time students. |
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In December 2008, the University Board of Trustees authorized an
increase in tuition of up to $300 per semester for senior college
undergraduate resident students and up to $200 per semester for
community college resident students. We will, therefore be
implementing the $300 semester increase for senior college
undergraduate resident students, but we will come in below the
$200, to $175 dollars, for community college resident students, and
a 15 percent across the boards for all other categories. This move
to reduce the burden on our community colleges, I think, is the
right thing to do, because these represent the students whose
financial profile is probably the most tenuous as we have in the
University.
In order to mitigate the effect of this tuition increase and assist
those students who will be at risk of continuing of their
matriculation due to the higher tuition costs, the Trustees
approved the funding of $10.0 million to provide financial
assistance to students.
This initiative is not designed for students who are receiving full
Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and Pell Grant awards since their
existing financial aid support will not be jeopardized by the
tuition increase. Currently, about 90,000 CUNY students receive
Federal Pell grants and 75,000 students are granted TAP awards by
New York State. The Federal government increased Pell Grant awards
in the current year by $421 (9.8%), to $4,731 per year. This
amount will rise by $619 (13.1%) to $5,350 for Fall 2009, and by an
additional $150 (2.8%) to $5,500 per year for Fall 2010. Overall
change in award from Fall 2007 to Fall 2010 is $1,190, or 27.6%.
This home-grown financial aid program will encompass several
measures aimed at benefiting as many students as possible. There
are five components to the CUNY Financial Aid Initiative:
Partial Tuition Waivers ($4,750,000)
* The University will allocate $4.75 million to the colleges so
they can provide assistance to students in meeting increased
tuition rates.
* Up to 25,000 students will benefit from these partial
tuition waivers. On average, the effective rate of the tuition
increase for this population of students will be reduced by
approximately one-third.
Tuition Payment Plan ($1,000,000)
* The University currently contracts with Sallie Mae, a financial
services corporation, for a tuition payment plan that allows
students to defer tuition by five payments over five months. All
students are eligible to participate; approximately 30,000 students
are enrolled per semester. Currently, Sallie Mae requires an $18
fee each semester ($36 annual) to participate in the program.
The University, as part of the Student Financial Aid
Initiative, will cover the cost of the $36 fee.
* CUNY will also: 1) significantly promote participation
in the program and 2) modify the payment plan by a combination of
reducing the percentage of payment required in the first month and
spreading the payments over more months in order to ease the burden
of the tuition increase on students.
Textbooks ($2,000,000)
The University has explored options for assisting students with the
cost of textbooks. Initiatives include:
* CUNY will significantly promote the purchasing
of books on-line. State Comptroller DiNapoli recently
issued a report which found that CUNY students can save up to 40%
on textbooks if they are purchased through on-line vendors.
* Comptroller DiNapoli's report reported that
undergraduate students can be expected to pay $400 - $800 per
semester on textbooks. By exploring other avenues of textbooks
purchases, students can save as much as $2,000 over a
four-year period.
* The University will encourage colleges to utilize used
textbooks with more frequency. A number of possible programs have
been identified, including following a model developed by other
colleges in which it is required that the same textbook be used in
core courses for at least a year.
* Colleges will be encouraged to develop student coop
programs to seek or donate used textbooks so that they can be
provided to fellow students at a reduced price.
* The University will encourage college bookstore
discounts supported by the reduction of college commissions.
* CUNY will fund additional library purchases for
electronic books.
* The University will also allocate funds to college
libraries so that very costly textbooks can be made available to
students by direct loan.
* CUNY will develop a philanthropy matching program so
that private donors can help students cover their textbook
obligations.
Student Employment Program ($2,000,000)
The University participates in the Federal Work Study Program which
requires it to match federal funds for student part-time
employment.
* In Fiscal Year 2010, additional Federal funds are
available for this program. The University, therefore, will
increase its match in order to provide more employment
opportunities for students. Currently, approximately 7,300 students
participate in the Federal Work Study Program CUNY-wide. With the
increased match, it is expected that another 700 students can be
afforded employment opportunities, bringing the total participation
up to 8,000. This will allow more students to participate in the
program and/or increase the hourly rate that students receive.
* CUNY will use the Federal Work Study Program as
a model to develop its own Student Employment Program. Students
will be hired as Student aides to work in such areas such as
tutoring, computing help desk, tech labs, libraries, and
registration.
Food Stamps Now Initiative ($250,000)
In light of the difficult economic times facing low-income CUNY
students, Vice Chancellor Garrie Moore through his Office of
Student Affairs is developing a program to focus on issues of
hunger, nutrition and homelessness, where appropriate.
* A coordinating council will be created, co-chaired by
Distinguished Professor of Public Health at Hunter College and the
Graduate School Nicholas Freudenberg and University Dean for
Student Affairs Chris Rosa. Members of the council would include
student affairs professionals from the campuses, especially those
in the areas of mental health and wellness and service learning,
and faculty with expertise in public health government benefits and
nutrition, and other relevant areas. The council will include
student membership and will initiate the planning and
implementation of activities, working with governmental agencies
and community organizations to help students to enroll in Food
Stamps and other benefit programs, make free or low-cost healthy
food available at CUNY campuses, and provide comprehensive
information on housing and hunger resources.
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