Introduction by Barbara K. Mistick

The Pell Grant remains a priority for the next few weeks. Please continue to advocate with your Representative and Senators about the importance of paying for the Pell Grant program and protecting the current maximum award amount of $7,395. Ask your congressional delegation to contact their colleagues on the House and Senate appropriations committees to request “sufficient funding to maintain the current Pell Grant maximum award of $7,395.” We prepared a brief sample letter you can use and tailor for your communications with your representatives. 

Without additional funding for the program, Congress will have to cut the maximum grant or reduce eligibility. The funding request portal is open for Representatives until March 30. The Senate portal has not opened yet so get your message about Pell to your Senators early.  

In other Pell Grant news, we are working on comments for the first AHEAD Committee NPRM, which is limited to the implementation of the workforce Pell program and changes to Pell Grant eligibility for students with non-federal grant or scholarship assistance equal to or exceeding their cost of attendance. Once completed, we will solicit sign-ons to the comments from our state executive and Secretariat networks.   

Finally, I know there is considerable stress about complying with the upcoming March 18 deadline for submitting admissions data through the Admissions and Consumer Transparency Supplement (ACTS) survey.  I sent a letter earlier this week to the acting director of the Institute of Education Sciences requesting an extension to June 18.  Additionally, there is reporting that the Department of Education is considering just a three-week conditional extension.  (See story for more details.) 

I hope you have a pleasant weekend.