Ohio State to Offer New Grants to 12,400 In-state Undergrads

COLUMBUS, Ohio ― Ohio State University says 12,400 students will qualify for new need-based grants next year as part of the school’s effort to make it more affordable to low- and middle-income families.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that the grants of $1,000 or $1,500 will be for in-state undergraduate students.

State officials have recently urged public universities to contain student costs. Ohio State President Michael Drake said that affordability, accessibility and excellence have always been his goals.

The $15 million program aims to reverse decades of almost continuous tuition and fee increases. University officials announced last month they will freeze all student costs for in-state undergraduates for the first time in 40 years.

The new grants will be paid for with discretionary funds available through savings in other areas.

University officials said last month that Drake was redirecting up to $17 million from central-office administrative costs, such as human resources and legal, into student scholarships and financial support to academic programs next school year.

Drake said students whose families make less than $61,000 per year qualify for the $1,500 grant. Those with families making less than $97,000 qualify for the $1,000 grant.

Drake’s vision is for the Ohio State to raise a total of $100 million for need-based grants over five years, beginning with the $15 million increase in student aid this fall. That initiative would be part of a total of $400 million dedicated to lowering student costs by 2020.