The facts: A report by the Education Trust, a research and advocacy group, concluded that just five colleges in the entire country were doing a good job of serving low-income students. N.C. State was not on the list, but also did not qualify for the report.
Our opinion: N.C. State maintains an adequate level of assistance toward low-income students now. Though budget cuts and tuition increases are inevitable, the University should continue this standard in the future.
Just five colleges are serving low-income students adequately, according to a report by the Education Trust titled “Priced Out: How the Wrong Financial-Aid Policies Hurt Low-Income Students.” N.C. State did not qualify for the report because the University did not enroll enough low-income students.
However, the findings sparked an examination of our University’s treatment of low-income students. Though N.C. State maintains an adequate level of assistance toward low-income students now, the University should continue this standard in the future.
Only one N.C. school made the list — UNC-Greensboro. This was because UNC-G had lower-than-average tuition and fees. However, North Carolina is among the top states in the country for lowest in-state tuition. Our state’s tuition rates sit at an average of $3,563 per year, significantly lower than northern states such as Vermont, New Hampshire or Ohio, whose rates are more than double the N.C. average.
The national average was $10,674 annually in 2004 according to the National Center for Education Statistics. With those numbers, N.C. State appears to serve low-income N.C. students well, significantly better than other states.
A main goal of North Carolina public schools is to serve N.C. citizens, and the University certainly serves its in-state students with lower tuition rates than competitor states do. However, student loan debt has mounted higher than credit card debt nationally, and tuition is rising every year. A public university must take other measures to protect the interests of its low-income students.
N.C. State does have opportunities like Pack Promise, the guarantee by the University that “our neediest students will receive 100 percent of their financial aid requirements.” Any incoming freshman who has a family income at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level may be eligible. Pack Promise offers aid through scholarships, grants, work-study and loans.
The University also has partial scholarships and grants, work-study programs, individual college scholarships, fellowships and Teaching Fellows. However, many of this programs are now under review.
Pack Promise is currently under review by John Ambrose, dean of Undergraduate Academic Programs. Teaching Fellows may be phased out as early as 2012. N.C. State has continually offered an opportunity for low-income students to receive a quality education, but with the current budget crisis, these opportunities may be severely limited.
It would be a grave mistake for our University to forgo the commendable opportunities currently offered to low-income students because administrators cannot find alternative programs to cut. Administrators and legislators should re-evaluate programs and services and try to revise programs that do not deliver such a significant blow to low-income students.
N.C. State has long promoted its “historical mandate of access, affordability and success for all students, regardless of income or need.” Though the University has upheld this tradition and served low-income students well in the past and present, the school should make sure this treatment does not decline in the future.
