Last Updated:9:56 PM EST 2/24/10 Section: News

Media Credit: Submitted photo HEOP students lobby against the proposed cuts to student aid in New York State.

Gov. David Paterson's proposal to cut the amount of aid given to students through the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) was met with opposition by Fisher students.

Paterson plans to reduce TAP by $75 per year for undergraduate students and cut TAP completely for graduate students.

In addition, students would have to meet higher academic standards to qualify for TAP. They would need to have earned 15 credits after two semesters of study, compared to the 12 credits currently needed. The GPA requirements would also be raised from 1.1 to 1.8.

According to Angela Monnat, director of financial aid at Fisher, undergraduate students who qualify for TAP currently receive between $500 and $5,000 in TAP awards, while graduate students receive between $75 and $550.
"Some people might not think $75 a year is a lot," Monnat said, "but for some students, every dollar counts."
Monnat said that the proposed cuts would be especially harmful to graduate students because graduate students receive very little money from scholarships.
Monnat also said that the college cannot afford to make up for the cuts, so students will have to make up the difference. There are other sources of aid for students, such as Pell grants and loans, and while TAP is used only for tuition, these other forms of aid can be used for expenses such as living expenses, transportation, and food.
"If TAP dollars are directed away from students at the front end, students may have to use these other aid sources to pay for tuition and effectively have less money for day-to-day expenses," Monnat said. She said another option for students is part-time employment.
Assemblyman Joseph Morelle met with students, many of whom are in Fisher's Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), on Feb. 12 in the Golisano Gateway to address their


concerns about proposed cuts.
Morelle stressed that he understands how important state assistance is for students and said that he has advocated for an increase in TAP in the past.
"Education is something we are invested in and that we value greatly," he said.
However, he also made clear the state's grave economic situation, calling it "the greatest financial problem the state's ever faced."

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