Michigan Promise Scholarship May Be Cut
In an interesting turn of events, state legislators are considering cutting the Michigan Promise Scholarship completely as a means to an end of eliminating $150 to $200 million in state higher education spending.
The Legislative Commission on Government Efficiency has the program square in their sights primarily because the current program is not based on financial need. Students from families in all income brackets can benefit from the grant, a fact that we believe show how out of touch they truly are with a little place called Reality.
Students are often put in the position of paying for their own education no matter what economic means their families possess. And in these difficult economic times, not every family that seems to be financially sound is so. A decision to cut this program will have a unfortunate impact on students who wish to go to college, but cannot receive grant money to do so because their parents made poor financial decisions over the years.
Interestingly, what the commission seems to be looking at is a symptom of the larger problem of higher education in Michigan. As institutions continue to raise tuition by double digit percentages each year to fund things such as salary increases and benefits packages, the quality of the education that they’re providing continues to decline. Students continue to need more and more assistance to get through college without the yoke of incredible student loan payments on the way to their first job.
Granholm promised it - in four years, you’re going to be blown away. Well she’s delivered. We’re all completely speechless.
Filed Under Michigan Promise News | 11 Comments
Michigan Promise 2008-2009 Information
The Michigan Promise scholarship provides up to $4,000 to high school graduates for successfully completing two years of postsecondary education. All students who took the Michigan Merit Exam (MME) have the opportunity to receive up to $4,000 if they meet all eligibility requirements. Students who receive qualifying scores (Level 2 or above) in each of the required test components are eligible to receive up to half of their scholarship in the first two years of postsecondary enrollment (in installments of $1,000 each year).
To claim the Michigan Promise scholarship installment payment for use in the 2008-09 academic year, an eligible student must certify his/her scholarship by November 15, 2008. To claim up to a $2,000 final payment (for those who received installment payments), or to claim the full $4,000 for those who did not qualify for the installment payments, students should visit the Web site www.Michigan.gov/promise for an application form. Students are responsible for notifying the Office of Scholarships and Grants of a change in their college choice.
Students must initiate use of their scholarship within two years of high school graduation and all installment funds must be fully utilized within four years of initiation. Students in the class of 2008, who initiate their scholarship in the 2008-09 academic year, must utilize all installment funds by the end of the 2011-12 academic year. Students, who initiate their scholarship in the 2009-10 academic year, must utilize all installment funds by the end of the 2012-13 academic year. Students must submit their application for final payment no later than November 15 of the academic year following their last year of eligibility.
To be eligible for the scholarship, students must:
• Take the state assessment test1.
• Have not received a Merit Award under the Merit Award Act.
• Must certify his or her eligibility for a scholarship installment payment.
• Enroll at an approved Michigan postsecondary institution or a military service academy within two years
of becoming a high school graduate (two-year period would be extended for service in armed forces or
Peace Corps).
• Complete the postsecondary education requirements (associate degree, two-year certificate, vocational
education program2 or 50% of the academic requirements for a bachelor’s degree, which is 60 semester or
90 term credits) within four years of initial enrollment.
• Achieve a cumulative college GPA of 2.5 (for students completing vocational education programs that do
not record grades; proof of course completion is required).
• Be a high school graduate or have passed the GED or any other graduate equivalency exam approved by
the State Board of Education.
• Be a Michigan resident.
Filed Under Eligibility, General | 1 Comment
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