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UC considers methods to raise affordability

By Chris Eldredge

Jan. 23, 2008 10:13 p.m.

As private universities with large endowments, such as Yale and Harvard, modify their financial aid to lower the cost of higher education for middle-class families, the University of California is exploring its own ways to make college more affordable for middle-class families.

Dartmouth University became the latest school to take such action, announcing on Tuesday that next fall, undergraduates whose families make less than $75,000 annually will receive free tuition, and the university will replace loans with scholarships.

As the UC continues to increase fees, it might seem like low-income students are hit hardest, but in fact middle-class families are more affected, said Thomas Lifka, UCLA’s associate vice chancellor.

This is because a large portion, currently 33 percent, of fee increases go to fund financial aid, which ensures that low-income students can continue to finance a UC education. Less of this aid money is offered to middle-class students.

“If there is a fee increase, there’s more grant money available to give out, and the grant money tends to flow most heavily to the neediest students,” Lifka said. “It doesn’t mean that middle-income students won’t get any (grants), it just means that the bulk of it will go to low-income students.”

The UC Affordability Workgroup, which is looking into the long-term affordability of a UC education, presented preliminary findings at the UC Regents meeting this month. The workgroup’s initial recommendations include increasing financial aid to middle-class families.

Comparing financial aid offerings of private universities with those of public universities is difficult because in-state fees at a state university are significantly lower than tuition at a private university, Lifka said.

Despite this, Harvard will expect middle-class families earning between $120,000 and $180,000 to pay on average only 10 percent of their incomes, according to a statement from Harvard.

A family earning $180,000 would pay about $18,000 to Harvard annually, whereas the same family sending a student to the UC would be unlikely to receive grants and would probably pay the full UC fee of about $25,000, including room and board.

Yale is providing similar assistance for middle-class families by reducing costs by 33 to 50 percent for families earning between $120,000 and $200,000.

“We’ve redefined financial need to extend much more into the middle class,” said Gila Reinstein, a spokeswoman for Yale University.

These increases in financial aid for middle-class families at private universities come amid pressure from Congress to make college more affordable.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has been a key voice in encouraging private universities to use greater percentages of their endowments to defray the cost of higher education, said Jill Gerber, a spokeswoman for the senator.

Currently the UC uses a federal formula that considers a family’s assets, number of children in college and income to calculate financial aid offers. But this formula does not necessarily account for the cost of living in different states, said Ricardo Vazquez, a spokesman for the UC Office of the President.

To help middle-class families keep up with the high cost of living in California, the affordability workgroup suggested raising additional money by having the state match private donations, increasing Cal Grant offers, using a greater portion of fee revenue to finance aid grants, and modifying the UC’s investment strategies.

UCLA does have financial aid opportunities unique to its campus, but most of these grants go to already enrolled students, Lifka said.

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