Diploma, GED now required to receive aid
By Ben Markley
New federal legislation, going into effect July 1, will tighten restrictions on what students are eligible to receive federal financial aid.
Dennis Day, vice president of Student Success and Engagement, said the federal government is concerned with giving money to students who have the ability to benefit from a college education.
“[The federal government] really doesn’t want to fund anybody here that has no earthly possibility of passing Comp. I,” he said. “The rule change will be for those people who don’t have a diploma or GED—they will not be able to receive federal financial aid.”
Day said this new legislation will put pressure on various incoming students when it goes into effect, including first generation students from poor education backgrounds and older students that never finished high school. International students, particularly refugees, are another key population affected by the upcoming legislation.
“Say I’m coming to this country as an immigrant from Bolivia,” Day said. “I got a high school education there, but I can’t get the record from the Bolivian government. Once I become a resident, I become eligible for all rights of all United States citizens, one of which is federal financial aid. I’m not going to be able to do that.”
Cyrene Torres, an international student from the Philippines, said the legislation made sense to her.
“I don’t think a refugee without a high school education should be prioritized over other international students,” she said. “I know they’re trying to get a better life, but it’s not fair for them to be prioritized the same way as someone who’s done the work of getting a high school education.”
Other students were more concerned about the potential effect on refugees.
“Financial aid should be determined by whether or not students have the means to pay for college,” said Beth Koop, student. “You’d think [refugees] would have more need for financial aid.”
What might seem to be the obvious alternative for these students, a GED test, is not so obvious for Day’s example of the Bolivian immigrant.
“I might be able to get a GED, but that’s kind of silly because I already got a high school education,” he said.
Day said that acquiring a GED is not always as simple an option as it seems.
“GED takes a while to complete,” he said. “There are some very smart people out there who don’t have the time or the circumstances to pursue a GED degree.”
In light of the opportunities that come with higher education, Day said this legislative issue would be carefully examined by the college.
“We need to continue to look at it very heavily and try to find ways to help those populations who are going to be affected most directly,” he said. “We might have to put more pressure on institutional aid.”
Day said the issue came down to the college’s mission.
“After all, community is in our title for the college, and we need to be receptive to the community that we have,” he said. “Is that part of our community that we need to serve?”
Contact Ben Markley, staff reporter, at bmarkle2@jccc.edu.