|
To:
Student Aid Activists
Fr: Ellynne Bannon, State PIRGs' Higher Education Advocate
Date: July 9, 2002
***Call
your Senators TODAY and ask them to support increases in the
maximum Pell Grant, and other key student aid programs***
The Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS and Education will
mark up the appropriations bill early next week, making key
decisions on how much student aid funding will be available
next year. It is critical that you call your Senators today
and urge them to them support a $500 increase in the maximum
Pell Grant award and increases for other key student aid programs
in FY2003.
Due to rising costs, state budgets cuts and the failure of
federal financial aid to keep pace, many students and their
families struggle to finance a college education. Increasingly
students are taking on high debt levels—the typical student
now graduates with almost $17,000 in federal education loan
debt—and working long hours—nearly half of all full-time
students work 25 or more hours a week-to help pay for college.
It is crucial that you convey to your Senators how essential
federal student aid is to making a college education more
affordable. It is especially important for students whose
Senators are on the Labor, HHS and Education Appropriations
Subcommittee to make this call today. Please see list at the
end of this alert.
Action: Call your Senator today and ask them to support
a $500 increase in the maximum Pell Grant award and increases
in these other key student aid programs: the Supplemental
Educational Opportunity Grants by $150 million; the Leveraging
Educational Assistance Partnership by $33 million; and the
loan forgiveness program by $32 billion.
Senate Switchboard: (202) 224-3121
You can also call your Senators and Members of Congress by
using the student aid hotline: 1 (800) 574-4AID.
Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services
and Education:
Sen. Harkin-IA,
Sen. Specter-PA, Sen. Hollings-SC, Sen. Cochran-MS, Sen. Inouye-HI,
Sen. Gregg-NH, Sen. Reid-NV, Sen. Craig-ID, Sen. Kohl-WI,
Sen. Hutchinson-TX, Sen. Murray-WA, Sen. Stevens-AK, Sen.,
Landrieu-LA, Sen. DeWine-OH, Sen. Byrd-WV.
|
