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Thursday, February 1, 2007
A Cost-Cutting Craze?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just weeks after Emory University officials said they would cut college costs for middle and low-income families, comes word from Georgia Tech that they’ll implement a similar program there.
The “Tech Promise” will ensure that needy families — those making $30,000 a year or less — won’t be saddled with decades of debt for a college degree. Tech officials told my co-worker, Andrea Jones, that about 400 students could benefit initially from the program, which will be privately funded.
Andrea points out that Tech is the first public institution of higher learning in the state to tackle the problem of college affordability, which, experts say, hurts economically disadvantaged students the most. Considering that it costs almost $15,000 a year to attend Tech, including books and housing fees, it’s easy to see how daunting the prospect of attending college can be these days.
So, the question now is: Will the University of Georgia, the state’s largest campus, and others follow suit? It’ll be interesting to see.
