OBAMA SNOOKERS STUDENTS

snook·er - verb \ˈsnu̇-kər \ : to make a dupe of

Non-Traditional Students

President Obama not only snookered voters prior to election day, He failed to mention to students that he cut Pell Grant eligibility by 33%.

THE LIE
President Obama claimed credit for increasing funding to the Pell Grant program. The program provides college funds, free from repayment, to millions of students. However, notifications sent out to college students are revealing a detail the President forgot to mention: the time a student can receive a Pell Grant has been cut by as much as three years.

Obama conveniently failed to mention the reductions while on the campaign trail. Instead he proclaimed that he had increased Pell Grant funding. CNN fact-checked his claim as true, citing the fact that government funding to the program is going up, but neglected to report on the reductions in eligibility that will affect students.

THE TRUTH

Students, who thought Obama was on their side, will be severely impacted as they must work to support their families while they attend college. Part-time students, often referred to as non-traditional students, who do not receive a full semester grant may lose funds if they do not earn an undergraduate degree within 12 semesters. Additionally, Adults who go back to school, including retraining for a new career, will also have reduced access to grants.

An email, sent out by the Dallas County Community College District, revealed that the number of semesters a student could receive a Pell Grant had been cut from 18 semesters to 12. This detail is not known to most students and has not been reported by the mainstream media.

Information taken from the e-mail is as follows: “On December 23, 2011, President Obama signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012 (Public Law 112-74). This new federal law states that the amount of Federal Pell Grant funds a student may receive over his or her LIFETIME will be reduced to the duration of a student’s eligibility from 18 semesters (or its equivalent) to 12 semesters (or its equivalent). This new law applies to ALL Federal Pell Grant eligible students effective with the 2012-2013 award year beginning July 1, 2012. (DCL-GEN-12-01)”

The grant, which has a maximum of $5,550, varies and is based on family income. If a student gets a grant less than a maximum, and a year later finds their income level has been reduced, they will not be able to recoup the difference in the lower amounts earned in a previous year due to the cuts in eligibility.

*Information gathered from various Internet reports