One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Cal Grant Ups Award Amounts to Help Offset CSU Tuition Hikes
Photo by bredgur via Flickr
Not all higher education news from the state is grim, thankfully. As a response to the new state budget's inclusion of hundreds of millions in cuts in our two university systems, the Cal Grant program announced late last week that they would adjust award monies to cover the student fee increases implemented at the California State University schools for the upcoming academic year. "The total State University Fee increase of $978 will be offset dollar-for-dollar for all 62,600 Cal Grant A and B recipients attending the CSU," a press release details.So many CSU students rely on grants to help them pay for their education, which makes grant programs at the state, university and national level vital to their success. Other grant programs are also making award adjustments to help bridge the new gaps due to tuition hikes:
In addition to the Cal Grant, all 108,900 recipients of the CSU State University Grant will receive dollar-for-dollar fee offsets for 2009-10. Federal Pell Grant recipients will receive an increase of $619, and federal higher education tax credits will continue to help families cover expenses other than the State University Fee.
Although this is indeed a spark of "good news" in California's higher ed budgeting woes, the fact remains that matriculating at a CSU, or UC, is becoming increasingly difficult due not only to increased fees, but enrollment caps and freezes, class cancellations, and curtailed resources, all of which impact the students and the employees at our UC and CSU campuses.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
