Eager to begin the college admissions process, Darion Jones filled out an early application as soon as he began his senior year of high school. By November, he was accepted, officially becoming a duck.
Unlike some students, he had comfort in knowing where he was attending college for virtually his entire senior year.
Fast forward eight months to August–Anxious freshmen are checking their mailboxes everyday for their housing assignments. Jones received his letter–but he knew that he would never live in his Residence Hall or meet his roommate.
After reviewing his financial aid package earlier that month, Jones’ world flipped upside down. He didn’t qualify for University grants or scholarships, and had no luck with outside resources. His award package showed a high number for the estimated family contribution, but his parents couldn’t pay the amount because they struggle with debt and their own student loans.
He calculated that if he were to attend the University and graduate in four years, he would accumulate more than 80,000 dollars in loans.
“Frankly, I don’t want to be like my parents,” Jones said. “I don’t want my life to begin in debt…I want to own my life, not someone else.”
He broke the situation down into two options: Attend the University and take out thousands of dollars in loans, or find a school more financially compatible.
Jones un-enrolled from the University. He says the only thing he is missing out on is experiencing campus life and new-found independence.
“It is difficult for me as a parent,” said Atisha Vaughan, Jones’ mother. “You never want to disappoint your kids. His pain is my pain.”
The end of summer is one of the busiest times of the year for the Financial Aid office.
Elizabeth Bickford, the Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships at the University, said that many students receive unexpected good and bad news at the end of summer, often affecting their college plans.
She acknowledges that financial planning can be difficult, and invites students and family experiencing financial stress to contact the Financial Aid office.
In a letter sent to families in late August, University President Richard Lariviere wrote that tuition this fall has increased 7.5 percent in comparison to last fall. This statistic is no surprise; tuition rates have steadily increased for decades. Thirty percent of the tuition generated from the increase will be used for financial aid, but for many students, like Jones, that piece of the pie is inaccessible.
Instead of packing up his bedroom, Jones is home with his parents, working and saving his money. He will begin school this fall at Portland Community College; by his junior year, he hopes to have saved enough money to enroll again at the University.
At a more affordable price, Jones will gain a college education, but there’s a higher price to pay for the experiences he will miss out on.
Moving away from family, for many students, is the first real step toward becoming an adult. It is the ultimate time of self-discovery, which cannot truly occur at home. When tuition grows each year, those lifelong skills and memories grow further and further out of the hands of young adults.
In a country that highly values education, many students must live with the burden of student loans or settle with the most financially compatible option, regardless of intelligence and talent, in order to gain a college education.
Despite the turn of events, Jones remains hopeful, “[I’m] accepting of everything good and bad, because this isn’t going to stop me,” Jones said. “It’s just another graph to plot.”
Increasing Tuition: Decreasing Experiences
Daily Emerald
September 27, 2010
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