The program has increased college attendance of D.C. students by 60 percent over the past five years, says Eleanor Holmes Norton, the district’s House delegate. “Most of these students are the first in their families to attend college.”
Norton says the law has stemmed an exodus of taxpayers who had left D.C. in part to access in-state tuitions in Maryland and Virginia.
“This bill provides higher education access to young people here equivalent to opportunities available in all the states,” she says.
The program received $33 million for 2007, and President Bush has proposed a $2 million increase next year.
This law is a classic “leveling of the playing field,” says U.S. Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., adding that the program has doubled the number of district residents attending college since 2000.
The full House approved the measure by a 268 to 100 vote. The Senate often has provided bipartisan support for the program, but a bill has not yet come up for a vote.
For the 2005-2006 school year, the program provided more than $30 million in assistance to more than 4,700 students, according to data collected by the House. The average grant was $9,500 for public colleges and universities and $2,350 for private institutions.
--Charles Dervarics
There are currently 0 comments on this story.
Click here to post a comment.
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
