Target: Susan Collins, Chair of U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee
Goal: Preserve Pell Grant funding that helps low-income Americans achieve higher education goals.
A financial tool that helps seven million students every year afford college is in line for drastic cuts under a proposed federal education budget. Pell Grants have served 80 million low-income families, providing young people with the opportunity to become their families’ first college graduates, working adults a chance to better their career prospects, and students of all backgrounds the opening to attain higher education. But the proposal under consideration in Congress would slash 11 billion dollars from Pell Grant funding and severely reduce the number of individuals eligible for the aid.
Students across the country would suffer. Currently, roughly one-third of college students nationwide benefit from Pell Grants, with the figures higher in many states. Changes to the number of credit hours required before a Pell Grant is available would significantly limit funding opportunities for part-time students or for working adults juggling a job along with their educational pursuits. Further, even students who do qualify for the grants will see their funds cut by more than 20 percent, or an average of almost $2,000 less funding per student per year. On a broader scale, these cuts will impact the ability of institutions heavily reliant on Pell Grant revenue – from two-year community colleges to private and public four-year schools – to stay operational.
Sign the petition below to demand politicians stop hacking away at education and future social mobility to fill short-term budget deficits caused by their own fiscal recklessness.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Senator Collins,
Eighty percent of states in this nation have committed to increasing the share of the population with a higher education. These states have made an investment in their economic and social futures. In order to meet these goals, more opportunity must be provided to more Americans. Proposed Pell Grant cuts to the tune of 11 billion dollars will facilitate the exact opposite outcome.
Fewer Americans will have access to significantly lesser funds. And fewer colleges and universities that uplift underserved communities will have the resources to do their jobs. Around 170 education groups, from every state in the country, are advocating on behalf of the 34 percent of college students – from first-time attendees to working adults – who benefit from Pell Grants and who pay it forward in ways large and small.
Invest in the future by investing in Pell Grants and educational opportunity for all.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: Emily Ranquist
