HACU and the Student Aid Alliance are encouraging everyone to
sign a petition to preserve federal student aid and keep America’s system of
higher education the best in the world. Access the petition at the following link:
http://action.studentaidalliance.org/5371/save-student-aid-statement-support/HACU
The fiscal cliff facing the U.S. last January 1 was
partially avoided by Congress making a limited number of decisions on taxes.
However, in that bill, Congress delayed decisions on spending cuts until March
1. If the mandated cuts go forward, students who receive federal aid risk
losing up to $765 a year.
Recent budget deals have already cut $32 billion from the
student aid programs, sacrificing some students’ benefits to pay for others,
and states across the country have also been cutting higher education budgets.
If Congress does not act to prevent a five percent cut to student aid programs,
more than 100,000 students could lose major portions of their financial aid,
and millions more will see their aid reduced.
In just the last few years, more than $32 billion in student
aid has been eliminated:
Work force projections show that by 2018, there will be jobs
for as many as 22 million new workers with college degrees, but the nation's
current trajectory indicates that goal will be missed by 3 million workers. The
need for an educated future workforce makes it more important than ever to
preserve, protect and provide adequate funding for the core federal student aid
programs, which offer students an opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skills
our nation demands for a strong recovery.