CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Congressional committees are debating several aspects of the new educational budget blueprint recently released by President Bush's administration, which included a proposal to increase Pell Grant funding by $1 billion.
Pell Grants provide federal financial aid to needy students attending college.
"We are hoping to see (the budget) on the Senate floor next week," said Matt Raymond, communications director for Sen. George Allen, R-Va.
In a reversal from what Bush said he would propose, the increase would include all Pell Grant recipients, not just freshmen, as he originally proposed.
University of Virginia officials said they are excited about the proposal.
Yvonne Hubbard, director of Financial Aid to Students, said she thinks the amount of debt many students face after college is regrettable.
There "aren't ever enough grants," Hubbard said.
She also said increasing Pell Grant funding for all college students would be a positive move.
Hubbard also said she was especially encouraged that maximum Pell Grant amount proposed by Bush is $3,750, which would increase grants by about $200.
The new grant amount is almost the cost of in-state tuition at the University, Hubbard said.
"The more the federal and state government can do to help us as an institution by providing grants instead of loans, the better off everybody is," Hubbard said.
Pell Grant recipients would not be the only people affected by Bush's new educational budget. Other proposals include increasing support of historically black colleges and of institutions that have large Hispanic student enrollments, as well as expanding existing student-loan forgiveness limits from $5,000 to $17,500.
Also, Bush's plan would try to encourage saving by increasing the annual cap on contributions to tax-free saving accounts that families use to pay for college from $500 to $5,000.
The Pell Grant aspect is most important in comparison to the rest of the plans in the blueprint, said Education School Dean David Breneman.
The proposed Pell Grant increases are "a help, but (there is) still a gap," Breneman said. "I think there is a case for putting money on the front end."
Breneman said he thought it would be beneficial to have Pell Grant increases for students in their first two years of college to help get them started. But because many people were upset about only increasing grants for first-year students, the present budget proposal is the best plan, Breneman said.
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