Financial aid money assists 367 incoming CMU students
This fall, 367 incoming students received extra financial assistance after the Central Michigan University Board of Trustees approved a $700,000 financial aid increase in July.
The extra money was aimed at helping students who do not quite qualify for Pell Grants, but were in need of assistance, said Interim Provost Gary Shapiro. To be eligible for a Pell Grant, students would have to have an expected family contribution of $4,617 or less.
Interim University President Kathy Wilbur said any extra aid is critical in today’s economy at last Thursday’s Board of Trustees meeting.
“We recognize that the world has changed,” she said.
Out of the $700,000 allocated for the extra financial aid money, $1,000 was given to 283 of 3,691 incoming freshmen (7.6 percent) and 84 of 1,160 incoming transfer students (7.2 percent). The aid was intended for new students and not previously enrolled students.
It also is intended for each of the recipients to receive $1,000 in the spring semester, Shapiro said.
“At this point, we targeted those new students,” Shapiro said. “We felt those people might have had the greatest need.”
One reason is because a lot of current students are still under the CMU Promise, he said. The CMU Promise, which set a fixed five-year tuition rate for incoming students, was awarded to students who enrolled before the fall of 2008.
After the Board voted in July to approve the 4.6 percent increase in tuition, financial aid also was increased by the same amount. The $700,000 was an added benefit to help with the increase.
“The over and above was wonderful,” said Dean of Students Bruce Roscoe.
Trustee John Hurd said he would support any extra financial aid to be available for current students as well.
“I think if tuition continues to go up, we will have to correspond with financial aid,” he said. “I think it was painful for all of us to approve a tuition increase (in July).”
In 2005, incoming students on the CMU Promise were paying $213 per credit hour, $251 in 2006 and $304 in 2007.
The rate increased to $324 in 2008 and $339 for 2009.
The cost for a standard 15-credit semester went from $3,195 in 2005 to $5,086 this year.
