Dwindling Student Aid

California has sunk to the point of having to choose between providing beds for mental patients and helping students meet rising college costs. It is a crying shame, but, as this month’s negotiations in Sacramento will make abundantly clear, California must continue making the choice because there isn’t money to meet both needs. That will be the case until the state has leaders who will explain the need for increasing revenue and spending limits in ways that make voters respond.

One casualty of revenue shortfalls is the student aid program. In Gov. George Deukmejian’s original budget, he provided $18.1 million for college scholarships this fall. The budget that he signed reduces that figure to $4.7 million.

Two programs, and the students who had every right to expect to benefit from them, are severely affected. The first is the Cal Grant A program that last year helped pay college tuition for 42,741 students who demonstrated a need. The program’s scholarships, which require students to keep their grades high to continue qualifying, can be used at a variety of schools, including private campuses.

The governor had planned to raise the maximum Cal Grant A award to $5,400, but the plans were set aside once the state realized the dimensions of its revenue shortfall. Students were told in July that the most that they could receive would be $4,577, a $207 increase. Effects will be widespread. For example, last year 2,422 USC students received Cal Grants, 57.1% of them members of minorities.

The other affected program is the Cal Grant B program that gives especially needy students living expenses during the school year. Half the money goes to community-college students. The Legislature originally approved $6.3 million, including money for 3,000 new awards; the governor cut the amount to $1.6 million. Last year 24,750 students received subsistence allowances.

Increasing the number and size of grants is important because tuition at schools across the country is rising faster than inflation. The College Board says that tuition and fees this fall will go up an average of 9% at private universities and 5% at public universities. Fees will go up 4.4% at the University of California and 8.6% at California State University campuses. While financial aid increased nationally last year, most of the increase was in unsubsidized loans that often leave students deeply in debt.

Even if the governor and the Legislature could agree on the program to emphasize, there still would be the question of overall priorities. Student aid is not on the list of items that the governor has said must receive more money. His list includes money to cover enrollment increases at the University of California and California State University, trial courts and county needs like health care --all critical items.

California’s master plan for higher education is based on several key assumptions. One is that public and private institutions both play important roles in providing a range of choices for students. The private institutions ease the strain on the public universities. Another assumption is that the state will help students pay to attend both public and private institutions to assure that young people, no matter their race or income level, have a shot at going to college. These assumptions are being undermined. If California doesn’t increase student aid as college costs increase, it may pay a bigger price later in lost talent.