
DATE: Wednesday, November 12, 1997          TAG: 9711120476

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL  

SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  115 lines

CORRECTION/CLARIFICATION: * Two-thirds of community colleges and about half of the state's four-year schools currently require a C average after two years to receive state financial aid. A story Wednesday incorrectly said they require a B average. Correction published Thursday, November 13, 1997. * VIRGINIA LOOKS TO TIGHTEN STANDARDS FOR FINANCIAL AID ABOUT 250 LOCAL COLLEGE STUDENTS WILL LOSE AID IF THE RULES TAKE EFFECT

Roughly 250 local college students will lose state financial aid if Richmond approves toughened standards proposed by a state education panel.

The plan, approved Friday by the State Council of Higher Education, would be among the most stringent in the nation, state officials said. It would bar state aid to:

Students who don't maintain at least a C average after 60 credit hours - or the equivalent of two years in college.

Students who haven't graduated despite amassing the equivalent of 4 1/2 years of credits at a four-year college - or 2 1/2 years at a community college.

The C standard needs the approval of the governor and legislators. The council has the final say over the 4 1/2-year and the 2 1/2-year standard, and has not decided when it will take effect.

Council members, all appointed by Gov. George F. Allen, say the goal is to funnel limited financial aid - which now covers 35 percent of students' needs - to the most deserving recipients.

``We're spending millions of dollars on students who are not serious about achieving or serious about graduating,'' the agency's chairwoman, Abingdon lawyer Elizabeth A. McClanahan, said Tuesday. ``All we're suggesting is, the students doing really well should have a higher percentage of their needs met.''

Harrisonburg lawyer Douglas Guynn agreed at Friday's meeting: ``The issue to me is more than money; it's a question of standards.''

But some college officials fear that the change could force students, particularly low-income and first-generation students, to drop out.

``It will be to the students' detriment, but it appears that it's a no-win situation,'' said Estherine J. Harding, director of financial aid at Norfolk State University and president of the Virginia Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. ``I still believe it (the decision) should be left to the universities because of the diversity of the institutions' populations.''

At Tidewater Community College's Virginia Beach campus, Valerie Olsen, an A student on state aid, said she likes both proposals. ``If you're getting aid, you should at least be holding an A or a B,'' she said.

The cutoff after 2 1/2 years of community college work also strikes her as fair: ``Some people are just professional students. They've got to make a decision.''

The state has estimated the changes would affect 2,780 Virginians receiving a total of $2.5 million a year. That's less than 10 percent of the 33,000 students receiving about $52 million a year in state financial aid. The $2.5 million would be redistributed to other students getting state aid.

McClanahan said the changes would not affect students on federal aid.

Among four-year schools, Virginia Commonwealth University has the most students in danger of losing state aid, 217, according to the estimates. Old Dominion University has 97 students, and NSU has 42 students that would be affected.

About two-thirds of the affected students - 1,900 - attend community colleges. The council did not provide breakdowns for the community colleges, but Karen Koonce, director of central financial aid at TCC, estimates 100 TCC students would lose aid.

``It's more of an administrative burden than anything else,'' Koonce said. ``It's going to be troublesome for us to go track these students.''

At four-year colleges, more students would be affected by the C-grade requirement; at community colleges, more students would be hurt by the 2 1/2-year limit. That's because, according to council estimates, two-thirds of community colleges already require a B average after two years to receive state aid. About half of the state's four-year schools, including ODU, do not.

Arnold R. Oliver, chancellor of the state community college system, said the 2 1/2-year limit could squeeze students who have changed majors or adults returning to school for job retraining. ``If we wind up with students not graduating or students not being employable, we may well have done a disservice to the commonwealth,'' he said.

VCU's assistant director of enrollment services, Barry Simmons, said students should be given the chance to change majors: ``In today's fast-paced world of careers and the way technology is changing, students may come in wanting to study one thing, but they very quickly decide they want to study something else.''

But Norfolk lawyer John D. Padgett, the council vice chairman, said, ``If they have already received the benefit of our financial aid, I don't think it's appropriate to give them another bite of the apple when somebody has to go without. . . . The purpose of this proposal is to make sure we're allocating the available money to students focused on getting their degree.''

At ODU, President James V. Koch said the 4 1/2-year limit was ``not unreasonable'' if students are given plenty of notice. David F. Harnage, vice president for administration and finance, said the council ought to consider exceptions to the proposal requiring a C after two years.

``It's a pretty tough balancing act,'' Harnage said. ``I do subscribe to the theory that we should have reasonable expectations of people performing academically. . . . But we must consider that education represents an opportunity for people to better themselves.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic

TWO VIEWS

Members of the State Council of Higher Education say the goal is to

funnel limited financial aid - which now covers 35 percent of

students' needs - to the most deserving recipients.

Some college officials fear that the change could force students,

particularly low-income and first-generation students, to drop out.

Chart

Who's affected by financial aid changes

For complete information see microfilm KEYWORDS: STUDENT LOAN