As
president of Ithaca College, I see the good things that result
when deserving students receive financial assistance for their
higher education ambitions. An administrative team at Ithaca
College has examined the potential impact of your budget on students
attending Ithaca. It is clear from their analysis that your proposals
would seriously undermine those ambitions of New Yorkers that
you so lauded in your "State of the State" address,
and in doing so would severely harm the future of Ithaca College.
I am writing to express to you my objection to cuts to higher
education proposed in your budget and to communicate to you my
concerns, both for my institution and for the students who rely
on the support of New York State for access to higher education.
The most egregious example involves modifications to the Tuition
Assistance Program (TAP), a need-based financial aid program
that has given millions of New Yorkers the means to a college
education since its inception in 1975. We estimate that the change
in the TAP funding eligibility formula, to use federal adjusted
gross income (AGI) rather than New York State net taxable income,
would eliminate TAP aid for 433 of Ithaca’s students (31
percent of our TAP recipients) and significantly reduce TAP aid
for another 843 of our students. The proposed 15 credit-hour
rule, besides being an administrative nightmare for our financial
aid office, would most affect those students for whom flexibility
is an important factor in program planning and those who face
personal crisis in their lives. What rationale can there be for
removing or reducing state support to these students?
While you have proposed level funding for other program areas,
it is important to note that New York State budget appropriations
have yet to fully restore funding to the Bundy Aid program. Similarly,
state funding for the highly successful Higher Education Opportunity
Program (HEOP) has been held constant for so long that the burden
of cost has been shifted almost entirely to participating colleges
like Ithaca.
There is, indeed, much that can be done to eliminate wasteful
spending in the state budget. I would ask, however, that you
please reconsider the proposed cuts to higher education programs
and consider instead the long-term benefits to New Yorkers of
expanding the state’s investment in their access to higher
education. I urge you to raise the maximum TAP award from $4,125
to the desired $5,000 mark, to continue to base TAP eligibility
on New York State net taxable income, to drop the proposed 15-credit
requirement, to commit to full funding of the Bundy Aid program
at the statutory level, and to fund HEOP at the increased level
proposed by the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities.
Please revive the partnership with New York’s higher education
institutions and help New Yorkers realize their dreams and ambitions
by investing in New York’s future.
Yours truly,
Peggy R. Williams
President of Ithaca College
