NEW PHEAA FUNDING FORMULA APPROVED

 HARRISBURG, JULY 5 – State Sen. Connie Williams said that a new formula being used by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency in calculating student grant funds would benefit Pennsylvania students.

 “The new formula will more closely take into account educational costs, so that students with higher educational costs will receive higher Pennsylvania State Grants,” Williams said.

 The PHEAA Board of Directors voted to accept the proposal, which was recommended by the Pennsylvania State Grant Task Force. The task force was established in 2004 by the board to evaluate the awarding formula of the state grant program and to ensure it maintained pace with steadily rising tuition costs and limited state funding.

 The new awarding formula will be used for the 2006-07 academic year. It will use the federal government’s method of calculating Expected Family Contribution to calculate student need based on educational costs. Costs considered when awarding aid will include tuition, mandatory fees, room and board, and transportation and living allowance for commuter students, not to exceed $22,000.

 Student need will be calculated by subtracting the federal Expected Family Contribution and 100 percent of the Federal Pell Grant award from the total educational costs.

 For additional information on the Pennsylvania State Grant Program, students and their families can contact PHEAA at 800-692-7392 or online at www.pheaa.org.