The interest rate on subsidized Stafford student loans is scheduled to double to 6.8 percent on July 1. President Obama and members of Congress have expressed strong support for keeping the interest rate at 3.4 percent (rather than having it double to 6.8 percent).
On March 30, the New York State Legislature finalized passage of the State Budget for the fiscal year that began on Sunday, April 1. It includes good news for higher education and state student aid. Funding for opportunity programs -- the Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), Liberty Partnerships Program; and Science and Technology Entry Program and its Collegiate counterpart (STEP/C-STEP) -- were fully restored to the December 2011 levels. Thanks to all of you for your support and advocacy!
Thanks to all who attended the New York Student Aid Alliance Advocacy Day in Albany yesterday! We had a terrific crowd of students from more than 60 college and university groups across New York State. Visit our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/NYStudentAidAlliance to see posts and photos from the event. Also, we invite those of you who attended to post your photos and video to Facebook.
New York Student Aid Alliance Advocacy Day is next Tuesday! Hundreds of high school and college students, faculty and staff from more than 40 college campuses will come to Albany to share their stories about the value of state student aid programs, including the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), Grad TAP, the Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), the Science and Technology Entry programs (STEP/C-STEP), and the Liberty Partnerships Program. Join us in the Legislative Office Building's "Well" for a rally starting at 10:30 a.m.
On December 8, the New York State Legislature passed a bill that approved $9 million in additional funding for student aid including: $5.5 million for opportunity programs (HEOP, EOP and College Discovery); $1.8 million for STEP/C-STEP; and $1.7 million for Liberty Partnerships. This is great news and a show of tremendous support for these empowering programs, especially during these challenging fiscal times.
