Bright Futures Scholarship Takes a Hit!

[ItzKatzTime]

Just read this today. Does anyone have any additional information? Am I reading this correctly that at a minimum it would cost students $197.00 more a year and possibly could double that. Is there anything that can be done other then buy more lotto tickets?

The Miami Herald > News > Education
Education

HIGHER EDUCATION

BRIGHT FUTURES TAKES A HIT!
Florida's Bright Futures scholarship program will pass on the state's tuition increase to students and families.​

By SHANNON COLAVECCHIO
Herald/Times Tallahassee Bureau

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida's popular Bright Futures Scholarship is about to lose some of its luster.

Faced with a $3 billion budget deficit caused in part by diminishing Lottery revenues, lawmakers are proposing a 2009-10 budget that does not raise Bright Futures scholarships to cover the 15 percent tuition hike most universities plan to start charging in the fall.

The move will save the state $34.4 million, and will cost individual students at least $197 per year, to cover the base tuition increase of 8 percent that lawmakers plan to approve with the budget. That cost will nearly double for students if the schools raise tuition a total of 15 percent, which they can do under separate legislation headed to Gov. Charlie Crist's desk.

''We don't have the money to cover it,'' said Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, who leads the Senate's higher education budget committee.

Established in 1997, Bright Futures covers 75 or 100 percent of a Florida high school graduate's undergraduate tuition, as long as the student meets certain SAT and grade-point-average standards and attends a state school.

The budget proposal represents a dramatic shift in Bright Futures policy that will affect tens of thousands of Florida families who count on the program when budgeting for college. Moreover, it comes after years in which university leaders and many lawmakers warned that increased university enrollments and mediocre eligibility standards raise questions about the long-term viability of the Lottery-backed scholarship program.

''Clearly, Bright Futures in the existing structure was not sustainable over time,'' said University of North Florida President John Delaney. ``It appears today that what they're going to do is make it a fixed scholarship amount.''

The tuition-increase bill is sponsored by Bright Futures founder Sen. Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie, who has defended and protected the scholarship program since its inception. It's unclear if Pruitt supports passing the cost of higher tuition on to Bright Futures students.

Originally, lawmakers intended for the Bright Futures scholarships to cover the 8 percent base hike -- and not the differential.

But Lynn said that as the House and Senate moved into final budget negotiations this week, it became clear that wasn't possible. Instead, the House and Senate propose leaving scholarship amounts at current-year tuition levels.

''We would love for it to pay for that tuition increase of 8 percent,'' Lynn said. ``But we just don't have the money.''

CRITICISM

Bright Futures has been criticized since its inception for providing scholarships regardless of financial need, and for setting low academic standards.

For example, more than 95 percent of incoming UF freshmen are on Bright Futures, and the median annual income of all UF students' families is $100,000.

The 970 SAT score required for the partial Bright Futures scholarship is well below the national SAT average of 1021.

The cost of Bright Futures ballooned from $75 million the first year to $120 million the next as thousands of high school graduates met the scholarship's eligibility standards. The current budget proposal would provide $419 million in Lottery dollars for Bright Futures.

Because the program puts the state on the hook for tens of thousands of tuition bills each year, lawmakers have long resisted raising tuition substantially. The result is that Florida's undergraduate tuition has for years been among the nation's lowest, and would remain so even with the latest increases.

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Read more: Bright Futures scholarships take hit - Education - MiamiHerald.com

 

[scooterbug44]

I really like the idea of this program - that no matter what if you work hard and get certain grades you WILL get to go to college.

That being said, I was surprised at how low the standard were considering it covers 75-100% of costs.

Could we just slightly raise the standards to offset the cost increases?

 

[30ashopper]

For example, more than 95 percent of incoming UF freshmen are on Bright Futures, and the median annual income of all UF students' families is $100,000.

??? So UF is a public institution, run by the state, and we subsidize tuition for 95% of the students who go there, by writing a check from the state.. to the state? I assume the money just goes to the school to spend. But it's weird how this works, why not just lower tuition rates, and fund the school directly? Incentives to get good grades? Maybe this is ok. Seems rather strange though!

 

[Matt J]

??? So UF is a public institution, run by the state, and we subsidize tuition for 95% of the students who go there, by writing a check from the state.. to the state? I assume the money just goes to the school to spend. But it's weird how this works, why not just lower tuition rates, and fund the school directly? Incentives to get good grades? Maybe this is ok. Seems rather strange though!

It's designed to benefit Floridians. If they just sent the money to the school and lowered tuition it would benefit anyone who attends. The idea is to increase the college educated population of Floridians.

It's also classified as scholarship funds and not state funds so it doesn't interfere with Federal Funding.

 

[Bob Wells]

I really like the idea of this program - that no matter what if you work hard and get certain grades you WILL get to go to college.

That being said, I was surprised at how low the standard were considering it covers 75-100% of costs.

Could we just slightly raise the standards to offset the cost increases?

Why raise the standard? Aren't we encouraging kids to go to school by providing tuition assistance? I am sure that if they are not cut out for college they weed themselves out but I want to a least give them the opportunity.

 

[Jdarg]

We heard about this at the scholarship/financial aid meeting at the high school. Maybe somebody who currently has a kid receiving BF money can chime in with any info?

 

[beachmouse]

But it's weird how this works, why not just lower tuition rates, and fund the school directly?

So you're asking for the government to shoulder more and more of the burden of higher ed instead of students and families. Where does that money come from?

The problem the state has is that the number of students enrolled in public universities in Florida has skyrocketed in recent years, both because of raw population growth, and the increased percentage of all those extra high school students who chose to attend college rather than solely working after high school.

And while state higher education funding in raw numbers has increased significantly over time, it has come nohwere close to keeping up with the increased number of consumers (ie. students) in the system. I wish I'd kept ahold of that SPT article talking about how the amount of funding the state budget provides per college student for operating expenses has dramatically fallen over the past 25-30 years once you adjust for inflation.

And there is a base amount per student that is needed to provide what the school feels is a minimum acceptable education standard. If the State does not provide that amount directly or indirectly (ie. Bright Futures) it still has to come from somewhere. Endowment income is problematic even when the investment markets aren't cruddy because so much of the monies must be spent for very specific purposes. So that leaves schools begging to raise tuition to meet that basic service level.

And to schools effectively playing chicken with the legislature while using students as pawns. UF has reduced its freshman classes in recent years because direct state funding has not kept up with previous enrollment increases and the state won't let them increase tuition to bring funding levels per student up to what they see as their minimum acceptable level. So they get their minimum funding level per student numbers by having fewer students to split the state part of the pot amongst.

 

[Matt J]

Now that I think about it, $!97 for a year of college is a pretty good deal and could easily be made up with financial aid (grants and loans) or even scholarships.

 

[SGB]

This is really just one more hit in a long line of increases that diminish the value of a Bright Futures scholarship. In 2007 they enacted a "tuition differential fee" for all students. This fee is not covered by Bright Futures. At the time the tuition differential fee was limited to never get to be more than 40% of the tuition cost and is currently relative low compared to tuition. Last year the legislature changed all that and now there isn't a limit on how high the fee can go compared to the tuition. However the tuition and differential fee can go up a maximum of 15% a year. Also, all of the state schools are now eligible to charge the differential fee. It used to be just 3-4 of them. I've been told that the creation of this "tuition differential fee" was driven by rising costs and was a separate fee from tuition so that Bright Futures would not be on the hook for this increase in tuition.

What does this mean to Bright Future recipients? It means that the tuition that is covered by their scholarship is only one part of their cost and it's going to be a smaller piece of the pie as time goes on. For example: If you have an 8th grader that you enroll in the prepaid tuition program (I don't know what the real numbers will be at that time, but this gives you a good idea), the tuition cost for 4 years is $15,088. The tuition differential fee is $11,772 for 4 years. This is based on what they project the differential fee to be in 5 years. That's a total of $26,860 for 4 years. So Bright Futures would pay for approximately $15,088 (56%) of your tuition, but you would be required to pay the $11,772 differential fee yourself. (It sounds like you will also be required to pay some of the tuition increases too based on what they are proposing.) BTW, if you enrolled your child in the prepaid plan prior to 2007, they are exempt from paying the tuition differential fee - if you planned ahead, it will pay off big time.

For those that are thinking their 8th grader (the fee will be adding up for those not going to college in the next couple of years) is going to get a full ride for tuition when they go to a Florida state school, be aware, that's just not the case. That's not to mention the local fees or room and board. But the good new is that $26,860 for 4 years of college tuition is still a heck of a great deal and is cheaper than most state college systems I've looked at, which is why they are now struggling with their fee structure. And if $15088 is paid by Bright Futures, then you have an even better deal.

Really, Florida is very generous with their education system. Bright Futures has always been an amazing program, and although it won't be as complete as it once was, it's still darn good. Also, while in high school you can be dual enrolled and earn college credit completely free. Many high school students get their AA degree with their high school diploma and never have to pay for it. You can take advantage of the amazing virtual high school too, where everything is also completely free.

 

[beachmouse]

Found my cite for up thread:

Add funding, subtract politics - St. Petersburg Times

Today, Florida's average annual funding per student in the state university system, adjusted for inflation, is nearly $5,000 less than it was in 1990.