Gov. Mike Easley’s announcement Monday to increase state grant assistance for students in North Carolina may not have an impact on N.C. State students.
In his State of the State Address, Easley said he plans to call for an expansion of the Learn and Earn program in next year’s budget. The program pays for high school students to take college courses with the intention of earning associate degrees and decreasing their time to graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
“We obligated ourselves in our constitution to provide for K-12 education. But that same document requires us to offer a college education as free as practical,” Easley said. “In this new world, it is impractical not to offer college to every citizen.”
In addition to the current program, which already pays for students in certain high schools to take college courses, Easley said his budget will expand the plan to include a two-year grant to students who maintain suitable GPAs and work at least 10 hours a week.
“This plan is not a free lunch,” Easley said. “You have to earn it. With every opportunity comes accountability.”
But according to Julie Mallette, director of the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid, there is no Learn and Earn program affiliated with NCSU.
Although the program will expand by 20 high schools in the 2007 – 2008 school year, there are 33 Learn and Earn schools operating in North Carolina. Easley said he plans to have 75 such high schools open by 2008 – 2009. He also pledged that his budget would fund Learn and Earn high schools for every student in North Carolina, giving students the ability to earn associate degrees without paying tuition.
With the extra two years of grant money from the state, Easley said, Learn and Earn students would have the opportunity to graduate debt free.
“It is the right thing to do not because our constitution orders it, or because our economy requires it, but because our North Carolina values demand it,” Easley said.
Although Mallette said it may be too soon to tell what changes Easley’s plan will bring to state aid funding, she said there are other things needy North Carolina students have to look forward to next year.
Education Lottery revenues will go back to students starting fall 2007 for people with expected family contributions less than $5,000. The amount students receive will be the difference between this amount and the amount of Pell Grant money received.
She said state awards are more difficult to administer than federal aid, because the state awards all of its grants directly to the student from a “limited pool.” As with the lottery aid, the final amount students receive is also highly dependent on the amount students get from the Pell.
Education funding is often a popular topic among voters, but Mallette said she’s beginning to notice a change in atmosphere when it comes to student aid.
“The rhetoric has escalated since the last election,” Mallette said. “Part of it is driven by changing political concerns.”
But she pointed out North Carolina has been supportive of need-based state grants in the past, even in years of significant reductions.
Kevin Howell, assistant to the chancellor for external affairs, works closely with the General Assembly as the University’s primary liaison. He said at Tuesday’s city council meeting that he preferred not to talk about the address at this time.
The budget process for the state is just getting started, and Mallette said that, just like with the federal Pell Grant increases both President George W. Bush and the U.S. Congress have pledged to fund, she’ll be watching how the state legislature follows through.
“It will be interesting to see where this goes,” Mallette said.
News Editor Josh Harrell contributed to this report.