THE STORY AT CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY

There were 682 State Grant recipients on campus last academic year — that was 24 percent of all Concordia undergraduates.

• The average State Grant award at Concordia was $3,868.

• In total, more than $2.6 million in State Grant awards were made to Concordia students.

STATE GRANT BENEFITS

The State Grant program helps students afford to attend the colleges that best meet their needs. The program:

• Targets low- and middle-income families with greatest need.

• Fosters student choice.• Has statewide impact.• Holds down additional borrowing and extra hours at

part-time jobs.• Invests in state’s human capital and future economy.

JULIE DLUABCI YANGHometown: Little Canada, Minn.Concordia University, St. Paul • Class of 2018major: Psychology minor: Hmong Studies extra-curriculars: Bold Scholarship recipient, Member of Concordia Hmong Student Association, plays for Intramural Volleyball team; works in Financial Services office

STATE GRANT BACKGROUND 2016* CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY, ST. PAUL FROM the Minnesota Private College Council

The State Grant has helped my family and it lessens the stress and anxiety on how we would possibly pay for tuition.

Because I have received this grant, I am able to attend Concordia University.”

WIDESPREAD HELP

Where do State Grant students go to college? Just about everywhere. They’re enrolled both part-time and full-time at all kinds of colleges — public and private, two-year and four-year. Here are some colleges with their numbers of State Grant recipients:• Minneapolis Community &Technical

College: 4,318• University of St. Thomas: 1,351• Metropolitan State University: 2,465• University of Minnesota, Twin Cities:

7,066

One out of four: share of Minnesota college students receiving these grants

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April 2016

BENEFITS

With these changes, policymakers can:

• Increase awards by $800 to $3,500 over four years and • Make 7,000 more middle-income students eligible.

Investing in the State Grant program is the best way to spend limited government resources and meet the state’s higher education challenges. And it would help lower-income and middle-income students across the state at all colleges and universities — reducing their need to borrow.

For more on the Council’s agenda for investment in the State Grant program visit:

www.mnprivatecolleges.org/policy/legislative-session.

2016 Agenda: Prioritize support for college students in any new investments

Yes, new spending in the 2016 session is expected to be limited. But with the budget surplus, investing in new higher ed spending is possible. If so, we encourage policymakers to prioritize college students by improving funding for the State Grant program.

We ask policymakers to help college students by supporting Senate File 3219/House File 3733, legislation that will improve how State Grant awards are set.

State Grant award amounts are based on what the government assumes about how much students and families can pay. But those expectations have become unrealistic, leaving gaps and contributing to the need for excessive borrowing. SF 3219/HF 3733 will make two improvements:

REQUEST

1. Decrease the “student share.” The current formula expects lower- and middle-income students to contribute as much as $10,000 per year for two-year college students and as much as $14,500 for four-year college students through borrowing and work. This unreasonable expectation contributes to excessive student debt.

Request: Invest $13 million this year to lower the student share.

2. Decrease the “family share.” The current formula expects lower- and middle-income families to contribute an unreasonably large portion of their income and assets to college costs. And when families are unable to pay, either students or their parents borrow to cover it.

Request: Invest $12.5 million this year to lower the family share.