Been thinking about this program for a minute, and want to give you all a heads up, if you will pardon me.
I paid for my education, though my folks would loan me money and flip me whatever they had for books. Being the first of four, and one of the eldest grandchildren on both sides of a "moving on up Irish Southie" culture, the best thing my whole family did with all of us was to talk about the future as fact. "WHEN YOU GO TO COLLEGE".....
Old school Dad sat me down after I got my acceptance letters. The local university, commute from home, pick nursing or teaching. Done. We had transitioned into a mostly Republican period, translated as "what grant money?"
I loved working with children being trained as the family babysitter, lol. I was fascinated watching them learn. The boys on my Dad's side were plagued with ADHD, learning difficulties, and one, unable to speak until he was five. His Mom was told to send him to residential care. He owns his own specialty crane business.
My brother retook main courses, and for years I'd drive into Emerson to read the text to him so he could prepare for exams. If the electric typewriter did not exist, I do not know how he could have passed anything past 4th grade. It was so hard to watch him struggle and I am so proud of him today. Not that it came easily to me either. I had to put in the time.
My younger sibs became engineers, heart surgeons, and lawyers. Two were beyond brilliant in their specialty areas. My sister won her medical school education by inventing a device that won a prize. My brother works in defense, and boy, am I happy he is on our side. You are too.
It's a secret, lol.
Both my Mom and Dad's folks came to this country, and integrated with Native Americans and African Americans. We are a patchwork flag and for the most part, until this generation, service folk or aggie (read mostly poor). Education provided us with a path to economic freedom in a very true sense.
You can hate Obama and or what the Democratic Party stands for but there is one fact that may change soon. As part of his programs, he opened up and revived the Pell Grant program. Free education. No loans to pay back or have haunt you for your whole life of credit if you default. If you apply and qualify, FREE.
I don't know if he'll make it into a second term. If he doesn't you can be the window with snap shut on this program.
Basically, you have 4 months to decide. July, August, September and October of 2012.
Please, do not let anything stop you from taking this opportunity. Wish you all the best of luck.
Thanks Bex, but, you are a
Thanks Bex, but, you are a powerhouse, and will love college, despite all the entry stuff you have to get out of the way first. Make sure you ask if you can get elective credits for life experience, at least that's a few out of the way. Don't think you can escape algebra, but, it might just surprise you and with the way they present it, you might find you are very good at it. You did very well in the first go around. Those are some pretty impressive grades. Also good colleges have great support systems providing you call them in, like tutoring and adjustment mentoring.
Now they gotta pass the "No
Now they gotta pass the "No American Citizen - Adult left behind" Act.. for real !! Hey Val, Blue, Hi BB.. thanks for the informative advice. This turned my 'one track mind' of researching on anything with the topic of being certified in coding and med billing to an ~all out~ FAFSA research from the time I woke up til now. If it wasn't for you guys.. I would of been shit out of luck for any type of grant, or even Fed loan for the up-coming Fall season.. in which I'd like to start 'half-time' degree studies by this Fall along with working on the certification thing. So, I found out the deadline to process an application is June 30th for the rest of this year... so online application is done : ) I, also, went onto my community college online website to see what my status was.. they apparently pulled up my placement exam from 2003 that I took when I thought about going into nursing... but didn't. I got a 95 in english/writing and an 89 in advance reading... so I get to go straight to college english comp... but the math.. ehhhh..lol ah who uses Algebra anyways : )~ I have one tiny weeny lil credit done from an orientation class that I took.. so only 64 more credits to go now..haha. Thanks again for the help !!
Val, I am so glad you jumped
Val, I am so glad you jumped in to share, please correct anything I get wrong. Sounds like you have the perfect background for this, which is fab.
I volunteer by mentoring folks who want to get into and finish further education. It's so important to do it while you are young, or have a break in the action. If you are unemployed or underemployed right now because of the economy, it's easy to study with the new online courses.
Not a politian, both the Dems and Reps have passed solid legislation. Laura Bush will always have a soft spot in my heart for making Junior pass the "No Child Left Behind Act" and giving it good funding. It may have proved to ambitious, but, we will get there.
You know a great program in
You know a great program in Texas is one where you can lock in the price of your child's degree early on and for a great discount. My brother and sister in law used this one for their two boys, locked them in at 11 or 12 with A & M University. Both attended and did well, leaving with engineering degrees. The younger one was way talented at baseball so also got some scholarship money there too. They loved how well it worked.
KRCVal, what I heard was that
KRCVal, what I heard was that once you were accepted for the first years grant, and your grades were decent, that the Pell Grant is good about following you for the rest of the degree you stated on entry. The Pell Grant would still exist under new political party, but, the funding I am speculating would be dramatically curtailed. You can still apply, but, the list of apps accepted would be much smaller than now.
Glad to hear it Shirley. You
Glad to hear it Shirley. You keep preaching. You have great insight, and I always enjoy the perspective you bring.
I just cant do it, I tried,
I just cant do it, I tried, it didnt work it makes my brain hurt so Im in the process of sharring Shirlee University with the world and guess what its pratacially free.
Becks, I believe what you are
Becks, I believe what you are thinking with the Pell and time limits, is if a student is in school for so many years, and has not completed a degree (just keeps taking classes), that student would no longer qualify for the grant. On the FAFSA ( the federal financial aid form you fill out and get at the college's financial aid office) it asks what level of education you are working toward (certificate program, associate's degree, bachelor, etc.) Once your ss# is in the govt's system, they keep track of all of that.
Some states also have grant money (at least they used to--with the economy the way it is, maybe not), and the eligibility would be determined by that paperwork..at least it was at the college I worked for.
Eligibility for grants is based on a formula that looks at income and the number of ppl using that income; also the type of income (some types are exempt from consideration: for instance, a portion of social security income used to be exempt.)
The rules change slightly each year, so sorry I cannot speak in definites on some of my explanations.
I went to a larger university, and it was the bomb, but the personal service to the student was lacking (logistically, the school could not 'help' 45,000 students--so you were on your own.) A smaller school will most likely give you more personal attention, counseling, and even help you fill out the forms..
Who knows what all of this will look like once our children are ready to go to college--we are saving for our 2 through the MET (Michigan Educational Trust) program. Started when they were born. Every little bit helps.
On a political note Blue ;)..I do agree that the current administration's decision to help with education is a good one. They'll just need jobs when they are done with school (enter My Man Mitt.) No bad feelings--just friendly banter :)
We was p-o-o-r, Shirley. No
We was p-o-o-r, Shirley. No kidding. What are your options? Scholarships, grants, military, student loans (beware...there is NO default here), parents and friends with money, pay as you go, you get me. The Pell Grant is as free as it gets.
Personally, I think you ought to take a shot on philosophy. Never too old to go back. You'd be great at it.
Bex, if the phone is easier,
Bex, if the phone is easier, feel free. As far as I know, you can apply as many times as you want. If it were me, I'd pick the biggest, baddest, best college/university in the area. Have your file folder ready. www.pellgrant.com is heavy governmental speak, so I would not apply directly to that site. What seems to work best is that you pick the program and the place, then go to the placement office, and apply through them. The grant is great about following you until you are done, especially if you can keep the grade point average decent in your major.
I wouldn't take no, until you get a letter saying no.
It may give you 100% coverage, 75%, etc. Who cares, you don't have to pay it back. I'd take a crack, make the commitment and try it for one year. With online courses, man....it is so much better sometimes than trudging to class and getting rote from a junior professor who could care less how many taught (auditoriums of thousands) or how you did with last nite's homework, though you could go and bug them during their "office hours." To me, the online aspect systematizes the learning process and makes the entire program more accountable. You learn as you go, and once you get up to speed, you amaze yourself with what you can digest, especially if you have a passion for the material.
Hey, if you need to step it down a notch after that, fine. You sat with the best of the best. It motivates you. And gives you a ton of other local opportunities if you need to go part time or whatever.
ps... sorry for all the (none
ps... sorry for all the (none Bob) stuff myself there as of late. Wishing to have pm's back on profiles but uhhh.. guess we are not going down that route.
I had gotten the Pell grant
I had gotten the Pell grant which paid for about 1 grand of the 8 grand that I owed towards an AAS back in 1997... the tech school I went with was a total mistake.. fast learning acceleration program that doubles in cost of a traditional community college.. why I take things slower these days ; ) The rest for the most part was made avail thru a Direct Gov loan that I have been paying on.. lil by lil for 15 years now.... and I still owe 2 grand of it...lol Haven't even thought about schooling since then b/c I was very cozy with jobs. Question: How many years are you allowed to apply for the Pell Grant, Blue? Heard from a friend that after so many years... that you can no longer qualify.
Nice. Nothings Free.
Nice. Nothings Free.
Make that "you can bet the
Make that "you can bet the window will snap shut," lol.