Dear Senator Kline,
First of all, as someone who lives and works in the 37th District, I thank you for your service to our district, particularly in this extremely difficult time. I cannot imagine what it's like to walk in your shoes each day.
I also fully understand the current reality of budget cuts. I understand that education and particularly higher ed is going to be hit hard, and I get it that you won't be able to stop that.
I'm asking you to preserve what in my mind is the most critical element of the higher education budget, the Washington State Need Grant. I am the Program Director for College Access Now, a non profit organization operating in the Seattle Public Schools (Garifeld, Franklin and West Seattle). We serve juniors and seniors who are low income and first in their family to attend college, recruiting them into a cohort and helping them with every step of the college admissions process: visiting campuses, choosing where to apply, test preparation, writing personal statements, submitting college applications, completing financial aid forms, making decisions and transitioning to college (including connection to academic and other support services on campus). We continue to follow and serve them as they continue to college.
80% of our students remain in Washington State, the vast majority at public institutions. Although I am concerned about many aspects of higher education, such as class size, rising tuition and cuts to support services , I am MOST concerned about the Washington need grant. With rising tuition and increasing financial stress, low income college students rely on the need grant more tightly than ever before.
Due to the high and increasing cost of tuition, our students receiving the Washington Need Grant and the Federal Pell grant are also usually using the maximum amount of subsidized loans, which means their ability to borrow any addtional funds is extremely limited or non existent.
If the Washington Need Grant is eliminated, reduced or postponed in any way, many CAN students will not be able to continue in college, certainly not in a 4 year college. There simply are not enough other resources to make up this difference.
Low income students must have access to college, including the financial resources to make it possible. I feel this is an important moral issue, but also an economic one. If these students are forced to leave college, without financial resources and already in debt for the college they have completed, they will quickly become a drain on Washington's resources that we cannot afford. This is also true for current high school students who will graduate and be unable to attend college. A few will get great scholarships to attend private colleges out of state, taking their talent with them. Most will be forced into dead end jobs, and won't be able to make the economic and social impact we need them to in order to have a healthy economy.
If there is anything I can do, if you need any data, any stories or anything else to preserve this, I am a willing partner. Please let me know!
We found a new location this year with a PLOWED ROAD! Win! No more digging out the car and pushing others out of the way! And, lots of perfect Silver firs!
Last year Kristin and I went with Garrison and it was super fun! This year Christy, Lydia and Mom came too...along with Cora!
It was a couple of crazy weeks back east....mostly summer, not fall! Starting out in St Louis for NACAC, I then spent a few days in New England, visiting some students and friends! Then, down to Atlanta for a few days with Julie, and to DC for NCAN!
Floating down the Chattahoochee from Julie and Ed's backyard!
Visiting Neama and Lester at Bowdoin!
In the
Great weekend in Bridger, Montana at the Nash Ranch (home of Tom's parents) to celebrate their wedding! We also fit in an archaeology survey impromptu around the rocks on the ranch, and a trip to part of Wyoming where Jay spent some of his childhood. Good times and beautiful!
This was so fun! We still slept in the tent...so not fully sailing camping, but almost! It was awesome!
