[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 129 (Friday, August 4, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11438-S11445]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


STUDENTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF FEDERAL COLLEGE 
                                  AID

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, as we continue to navigate the budget 
process and make difficult decisions about spending cuts, we must look 
harder at our priorities and make sure that our choices are sensible.
  It is easy to fall into the trap of looking at budget numbers in an 
abstract way and forget about the very real consequences that cuts in 
student aid will have on young men and women in this country.
  The most compelling arguments for the preservation of student aid are 
made by the recipients of that aid whose lives have been changed for 
the better by the education they have received. My office has received 
over 1,500 statements from students or former students responding to 
the proposed cuts of that aid. Almost to a person, they say that aid is 
crucial. I ask unanimous consent that a sample of these statements may 
be printed in the Record. The States where these students live or 
attend college are listed, but other identifying information has been 
removed.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:


                                 ALASKA

       When my oldest sister went to college grants were offered 
     to lower income students. Today, loans are the only offers in 
     abundance. Education for America's future is not a priority. 
     It should be.


                                ALABAMA

       1) After having gone bankrupt and losing a lot of my 
     material goods in 1993, college did not appear to be in any 
     way even close to an option. At that time I was not familiar 
     that someone of my age could even apply for financial aid. I 
     did apply. I was awarded with financial aid. I have been on 
     the president's honor roll now for three out of five quarters 
     at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. My major is Social 
     Work with an emphasis in working with people with 
     disabilities. I am also learning sign language. With the 
     internalized experiences that I now have--in putting my life 
     back together--I have too much to offer the field not to go 
     in that direction. I hope one day to open a vocational 
     training center in wood working and welding for the deaf. I 
     will succeed.
       I can certainly empathize with congressional constituents 
     in attempting to cut the budget. It cannot be an easy task I 
     know. But the last place that I would think that you would 
     want to cut would be education.


                                ARIZONA

       (1) I am now a Junior at the University of Arizona, and I 
     am studying Material Science and Engineering. I come from a 
     single parent household, and at the age of 18, I left home 
     because my mother could not afford to keep up the rent on the 
     home we lived in. Without the financial aid I get, I would 
     have to work about 30 hours a week instead of the 12-15 hours 
     that I do work now in order to support myself. Living with my 
     mother's boyfriend is not an option because we do not see eye 
     to eye on many things, and living there would put too much 
     undo strain on all parties involved.
       I am a first generation American of Mexican descent, 
     therefore my mother didn't attend college and from what I 
     have heard, my father didn't graduate from high school. I 
     have an opportunity to be the first member of my entire 
     extended family to attend a university and earn a degree. 
     Financial aid is vital to my survival here.
       I know there are more out there with my story, so please 
     don't cut financial aid, it will hurt those of use who really 
     need it. I can't afford to work many hours and go to school 
     at the same time; not when I am working for an Engineering 
     degree.
       (2) My story is quite simple, really. I would not have gone 
     to school without student aid. It is just that simple.
       I graduated in 1993 from the University of Tulsa with a BS 
     in Economics. I graduated Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. 
     Currently, I am employed as a market analyst with WilTel, the 
     fourth largest telecommunications company in the US.
       None of these opportunities would have been possible 
     without the SEOG and Pell Grants I received. My father was 
     working class and only had an income of $16,000/yr while I 
     was in college. I worked 30 hours a week at various jobs, 
     including a pawn shop and a financial planning firm, to cover 
     my living expenses through school. Without the grants, 
     however, my only option for paying tuition would have been 
     loans. Mind you, I took $8,000 in loans to cover tuition that 
     was not paid by my grants, so I did not get a free ride. But 
     borrowing much more than that would have made college costs 
     prohibitive.
       I am a pretty pragmatic person. Considering today's job 
     market for college graduates, I could not have justified 
     borrowing $15,000 or $20,000 to go to school as my earning 
     potential would not have been enough to cover my loan 
     payments upon graduation. Furthermore, there was no guarantee 
     of a job upon graduation. Borrowing that amount of money 
     would have been a poor risk. Without federal support, my life 
     would not have succeeded as it has. Please support continued 
     funding for student loans.


                               CALIFORNIA

       (1) I grew up in rural California in a town called 
     Laytonville. My high school consisted of 180 students. I 
     graduated with 35 other individuals, about 10 of whom have 
     gone on to postsecondary education. Of those people, I don't 
     know of one who would be able to continue their education 
     without federal financial aid. Due to unsustainable logging 
     practices, the Laytonville economy (which used to be based on 
     logging) is almost non-existent. The few legal jobs available 
     are in education or in catering to the needs of wealthy 
     tourists or the marijuana farmers that support most of the 
     town. By continuing my Stanford education, I hope to be able 
     to make meaningful contribution to society. I hope to work to 
     improve the logging practices that destroyed the economy of 
     my hometown.
       My father commutes three hours a day to work as a paralegal 
     and my mother makes under $15,000 a year as a clerk in a 
     clothing store. They cannot afford to pay for my education. 
     Without federal support I would have to return home and 
     choose between dodging police helicopters to make a decent 
     living growing marijuana or barely subsisting on the wages of 
     a gas station attendant. I have worked hard to reach 
     Stanford. I would hate to have to spend the rest of my life 
     knowing that my government was more interested in making 
     missiles to sell overseas than in helping me to make a 
     meaningful contribution to my country.
       (2) I cannot even begin to express my gratitude to the 
     programs that have allowed me to have the financial ability 
     to pursue my education. Everyday I feel so fortunate to be 
     able to have this opportunity, I always knew that I would go 
     to college, but I never really thought about what a financial 
     burden it could be.
       My mother depends on her meager income and assistance from 
     our immediate family to keep us financially stable. She came 
     to this country from the political oppression of Vietnam in 
     search of a better future. But, as her daughter, I wonder if 
     it is any better for her as she endures 12-hour days, six 
     days a week, as a manicurist, with no vacation, no health 
     insurance, and no pension. My mother waits by the mailbox 
     everyday to see if my financial aid will be as helpful next 
     year as it has been this year. She has given up on her future 
     and knows that she must work to survive. But, for me, she 
     hopes not just for survival, but possibilities. When I was a 
     child, 

[[Page S 11439]]
     she would grab my hand and feel them to see if they were calloused like 
     hers. Her one wish is that the hands of her children will be 
     free of those callouses and they will be able to use their 
     minds, rather than be condemned to a life of hard labor.
       That is what it comes down to. You are talking about more 
     than just monetary amounts; you are talking about 
     possibilities. With the price tag of around $13,000 to go to 
     a University of California school, those with meager incomes 
     are alienated from the institutions of higher learning. This 
     is not right.
       Why should children try if there will be no one to 
     recognize the pure merit of a desire to learn? Take something 
     else away, but do not take away the opportunity for people to 
     better themselves.
                                COLORADO

       My husband and I have an adopted 17 year old son, just 
     beginning his senior year of high school. He wants very much 
     to attend college. My husband is a blind customer-service 
     representative for a large company. Just before Christmas, my 
     husband's company told him and some other employees that if 
     they wanted to keep their jobs they would have to take a 
     rather large pay cut. From the beginning, we did not feel 
     that the public schools in this area could give our son the 
     basics in education that he needed. We elected to spend our 
     money on his tuition and thought that he would be able to 
     apply for aid when he got ready to consider college. We 
     struggled to put our son through private school, from 
     kindergarten through high school, because we feel that a good 
     education is a worthwhile expenditure. It is all we can do to 
     handle our bills, especially now with the pay cut. I just do 
     not see how our son can manage to attend college if aid is 
     not available.
       I am certain that there are other families who feel that 
     education is a vital part of the future of our country. How 
     can we have leaders if our children can't get the education 
     they need to prepare them? Please do not cut aid to students.


                                GEORGIA

       1) In 1994, I made the decision to quit my job, leave home, 
     and borrow $10,000 to finance my first year of education as a 
     returning graduate student. My situation is not unusual. 
     Because of the demands of graduate study most students are 
     required--either by department regulations or by the demands 
     of their workload--to abandon their sources of income.
       Before arriving at my decision--to abandon my home and 
     income--I had to be sure that my debt would be manageable 
     both during and after my graduate education. Had the current 
     structure not been in place, I would not have been able to 
     seek my degree. America would have had one less instructor to 
     help our students be competitive and one more bartender to 
     mix drinks and pour beer.
       As a teacher, I will not be making the doctor's salary 
     quoted by Rep. Goodling. To me, a $100 to $400 increase in 
     loan payments is not ``pennies a month.'' My situation is not 
     the exception, but the rule. Please leave the loan system 
     intact. Do not prevent those of us who need it most the 
     chance to improve ourselves and, through our work, improve 
     the nation.
       2) My name is David Lamar Brand, Jr., and I am a second 
     year student at Mercer University School of Medicine in 
     Macon, GA. If it were not for federal subsidized student 
     loans, I would not have been able to attend college. My 
     parents, who themselves never attended college, were not able 
     to finance my education. With the help of need-based student 
     aid including scholarships, grants, work-study, PLUS loans, 
     and federal subsidized student loans, I attained a Bachelor 
     of Science in Engineering degree from Tulane University in 
     1989. Without the help of the student loans I would have been 
     just another high school graduate looking for a mediocre job.
       Currently in medical school, I am still depending on 
     student loans for my survival. This year alone I borrowed 
     nearly $36,000 to finance my tuition, books, equipment, and 
     personal expenses. At the end of my medical education I will 
     owe approximately $250,000 including my loans from college 
     and the accrual of interest on my current unsubsidized loans.
       I leave you with two thoughts. The first being that the 
     interest subsidized by the federal government will be repaid 
     later in the form of tax dollars that I as a doctor will pay 
     for the rest of my life compared to the tax dollars from the 
     high school graduate with a mediocre job that I would have 
     been if it were not for these loans. Please do not deny 
     others the same opportunities that I had.
       Second, we must remember that education is the gateway to a 
     better life for disadvantaged youths and adults. If we do not 
     provide help to those seeking an education, we will end up 
     paying for it with some other type of government assistance. 
     Do not deny an affordable education to those who need this 
     assistance. This country would lose many great minds and 
     achievers if that were to happen.


                                 IDAHO

       1) I'm a veterinarian who is completing a second degree 
     (Ph.D) so that I can teach veterinary medicine and conduct 
     research in reproductive physiology.
       Vet school required taking out very large loans. Although I 
     worked at regular and work-study jobs throughout four years 
     of college, I graduated $26,000 in debt and very tired. I 
     have been working 80-100 hours weekly for 4 years trying to 
     get my PhD. I am now looking at entry-level teaching jobs 
     that pay $25,000 yearly, and post-doctoral positions that pay 
     even less.
       I consider myself very fortunate to be able to do what I 
     have done with my life and I would never complain about a 
     system that allows me the freedom to do this. It's been 
     great--but I know that paying back my loans will be a 
     struggle for me, and for many like me. I think we should 
     encourage education and not make financial aid more limited 
     than it is now. I urge Congress to take responsible action to 
     continue federal funding of student aid.


                                ILLINOIS

       I come from an underprivileged background: I grew up on 
     welfare in an atmosphere of drugs and severe domestic 
     violence. I never received any incentive or support 
     (financial or emotional) from my family to attend college. I 
     financed my education myself, and worked very hard as a 
     college student. I graduated from the University of 
     California at Berkeley as the valedictorian of my department 
     (summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA). I decided to pursue a Ph.D. 
     so that I could become a teacher and inspire students to 
     improve their lives and the world around them as my college 
     professors had inspired me.
       The University of Chicago, whose tuition and living 
     expenses total more than $30,000 per year (more than my 
     parents' income combined), is only affordable due to 
     assistance from the Javits Fellowship. If this fellowship is 
     eliminated, I WILL HAVE TO QUIT GRADUATE SCHOOL!
       Elimination of the Jacob Javits Fellowship will force many 
     of the best, most talented humanities graduate students in 
     this country out of school and prevent us from achieving our 
     goal of improving society through education. Please, do not 
     let this happen.


                                INDIANA

       1) I'm writing to protest the proposed financial aid cuts 
     for higher education.
       I am a single parent who struggled from 1986 through 1990 
     to earn my BA in sociology, and I have a son who will be 
     applying to college next year.
       During my undergraduate career I worked 10-30 hours per 
     week in a factory in addition to taking a full course load. I 
     am also the sole parental role model for my two sons, now 
     aged 21 and 16. At that point there had already been 
     substantial cuts in federal financial aid. I am now strapped 
     with a sizable student loan debt!
       With the planned cuts, I am worried that my sons futures 
     may be jeopardized by lack of financial aid. Please remind 
     Congress that student aid is the key that unlocks the 
     financial door to education.
       2) As a mother of five with husband on disability/
     retirement income, I can only work enough hours to provide 
     food, shoes, and haircuts. The kids are all above average 
     students and I expect them to earn scholarships as well as 
     handle part-time jobs, but this will not cover the total 
     costs of college.
       My oldest daughter attends Loyola U. of Chicago which costs 
     $19,900 a year. A $4,000 a year scholarship was needed to 
     allow her to attend. Next year our second daughter is going 
     to Ball State . . . once again only possible because of 
     financial aid.
       Without financial aid both daughters would be working at 
     McDonald's without much of a future in sight. Help keep my 
     family's dreams alive.
                                  IOWA

       1) I live in Iowa City, and I grew up in rural western 
     Illinois. My parents were poor and I did not know anything 
     about financial aid when I graduated from high school in 
     1968. Because I thought I would not be able to afford 
     college, I went to junior college for a year and then decided 
     to get involved in the changes going on around me.
       I got involved with my community and homeless people. I 
     worked and lived with homeless people as a Catholic worker in 
     the midwest. When I was 35 years old I decided I really 
     needed to have an education.
       I went to a junior college for a year on financial aid and 
     worked at night as a switchboard operator. Then I went to 
     Marycrest College in Davenport, Iowa and got a degree in 
     Social Work. I continued to work nights at the hospital as a 
     switchboard operator and continued to go to school. I would 
     not have made it through school if it had not been for the 
     financial aid I received.
       2) I was born and raised on a small dairy farm in Iowa--the 
     same quarter section farm on which my father was born and 
     raised and still lives; the same farm which my great-
     grandparents purchased when they emigrated from Germany in 
     the 1870's. As the eldest of five children, I worked 
     alongside my parents on the farm from an early age. My 
     parents went to work full-time when they graduated from 8th 
     grade--my father as a farmer and my mother as a domestic 
     worker. As most loving parents do, they wanted their children 
     to have a better life than they had, so they were supportive 
     of our educations. Even with all the farm work there was to 
     be done, we still had time to study.
       When I was a high school student and began to speak of 
     attending college, my parents sadly and gently informed me 
     that college was an impossible dream. The University was too 
     far away (this was Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, just 
     180 miles from where we lived), it was too expensive, and 
     ``people like us'' just didn't go to college.
       I was a National Merit Scholar, a member of the National 
     Honor Society, and I graduated from high school with a 4.0 
     gpa. 

[[Page S 11440]]

       I did win several scholarships, but without the other 
     student aid I received--including grants, work-study, and 
     guaranteed student loans--I would never have been able to 
     attend even an inexpensive state university. My parents were 
     only able to contribute less than $1,000 to my education.
       I graduated with honors and distinction from Iowa State in 
     1985. I earned a National Science Foundation Fellowship and 
     received a Ph.D. at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology 
     in 1991.
       Cutting financial aid for undergraduate and graduate 
     education will make it much harder, and in some instances, 
     impossible, for people from working class and working poor 
     backgrounds to receive formal educations and to ``move up the 
     socio-economic ladder'' in this society.


                                 KANSAS

       Although I was a class salutatorian, a Kansas state 
     scholar, and a National Merit semifinalist, I could not have 
     attended college without financial aid. I worked from twenty 
     to forty hours a week, attended classes, and valiantly tried 
     to participate in extracurricular activities. Without 
     financial aid, I would not have made it. Even with some aid I 
     struggled quite a bit: not with classwork, but with finances.
       I went to the University of Kansas. I remember wishing so 
     hard that I could audition for plays there, or play my 
     clarinet in the band--but I had to work, and work every day. 
     It took me five years to obtain my undergraduate degree, even 
     though I'd started my undergraduate years as an Honors 
     student and a Watkins-Berger scholar.
       I hope that you will enhance student financial aid and not 
     reduce it at all. I met some students from working class 
     families at the university level, but most students came from 
     more privileged backgrounds. Lucky people who have not known 
     hunger sometimes do not understand what it's like to have 
     very little in a land of plenty, and they overlook the needs 
     that they have not known. I worry that lawmakers may choose 
     to remain ignorant and ignore the needs of intelligent people 
     who lack money. I think that self-supporting students deserve 
     governmental support as they strive to create opportunities 
     beyond birthright.


                                KENTUCKY

       I am originally from Knox County, Kentucky. Knox county is 
     a very poor county in the southeastern part of the state. I 
     suppose that in most people's mind Knox County would be their 
     vision of ``Appalachia.'' Although most of my extended family 
     graduated from high school, no one had attended college 
     before.
       Because of my disability, I believed that if I were to 
     succeed in fulfilling my dreams, I needed to go to college. 
     We did not have any money to pay college tuition, books, room 
     and board or any of the other expenses typically incurred by 
     college students. Like most other folks in Knox County, we 
     worried about food and housing from month to month.
       Thanks to student aid programs (and the support of many 
     people), I work every day and continue to pay back those 
     student loans. I'm very thankful for that opportunity. 
     Without the student aid support I would not have attended 
     college at all. I can only speculate on my fate if I had not 
     been able to take advantage of federal student aid programs. 
     Because of my disability, socioeconomic status, and other 
     social factors, I would suspect that I would still be in 
     southeastern Kentucky dreaming my dreams--without any means 
     to fulfill them.


                                MARYLAND

       1) I am a 26 year old single black male who is the first in 
     my family to come this far in education. Most of the funding 
     for my undergraduate education came from federal financial 
     aid. Any money saved, earned, or given from my family went to 
     supplement the federal aid.
       My funding for medical school is solely dependent upon 
     financial aid, without which school would be an impossible 
     goal for me. Even when financial aid is given it is usually 
     just to cover school costs, i.e. tuition and fees, etc. So 
     covering costs for basic needs such as food, shelter and 
     clothing becomes a hardship. I am not selfish in thinking 
     that I am the only one who have these difficulties in trying 
     to better themselves. If financial aid is cut the government 
     will be doing all of us a dis-service.
       2) I'm a native of Baltimore and come from a blue-collar 
     background (proudly, I might add); my father has been a 
     barber for most of his life; my mother stayed at home to care 
     for me and my brother when we were in school. I got a great 
     deal out of my early education; I grew not only 
     intellectually, but also as an individual. I decided to 
     continue my education and go to college.
       I was a first generation college student. I qualified for 
     almost every form of federal student aid and after graduation 
     I owed approximately $5,000. I went to graduate school so 
     that I could ``give back'' to a community which gave me so 
     much. After I received my degree I had a total of $32,000 in 
     debt.
       Now it's 1995, and I've done what I set out to do. I 
     currently work at the Catholic University of America in 
     Washington, DC in the Career Services Office. My salary, 
     unfortunately, has not eased the financial burden of my debt. 
     Consider this: I've been paying my student loans, on time, 
     for almost 5\1/2\ years; I still owe approximately $27,000 
     dollars. I've paid, to date, over $18,000 in student loans on 
     a balance of $32,000, and I still owe $27,000! There is 
     something wrong with this! If the Republicans get their way, 
     I'll be considered a lucky one. There's got to be a better 
     way. Imagine what my payments would be if the interest had 
     begun accruing on the receipt of the loans.
       Many of the people in my generation are probably not going 
     to be able to afford to send their children to college. A 
     college education will be something for the elite few, not 
     the majority of the people. Someone like myself, who had the 
     desire to attend college and the obstacles to prevent that 
     from happening, won't be able to go. If we want to remain a 
     country of opportunity, then we must make opportunities not 
     only available, but available to everyone.
       3) I am currently a senior majoring in theater who will 
     have $20,000 in debt when I graduate. If Stafford Loans are 
     eliminated, or if there are any cuts in my student aid, my 
     future education plans will be impacted. My future education 
     plans are to work after graduation so that I can pay off my 
     loans and then return to school for an Masters in Fine Arts. 
     I would like to teach another generation of theater 
     professionals.
       Senator Kennedy, when you talk on Capitol Hill to other 
     members of the Senate, please tell them that cuts in student 
     aid will cause me to have to drop out of school because the 
     aid, especially the loans, make it possible for me to 
     continue my education without having to do without some of 
     the other essentials like food.
                             MASSACHUSETTS

       1) Two years ago I discovered that I had a tumor on my 
     spinal cord. My life as a shipbuilder ended that day and my 
     life as a student began again. I applied for Federal 
     financial aid and received a Pell Grant and a $700 
     scholarship. In January of 1994 I started my first semester 
     towards an Associate's Degree in Civil Engineering. I have 
     been attending school on a fulltime basis (as my impairment 
     allows) ever since. I have re-applied for another grant for 
     the next fall semester. I have also applied for a grant in my 
     son's name, who with any luck, will be my classmate next 
     semester.
       My illness has wiped out my family's savings and the income 
     from my job. To make a long story short, it hasn't been a 
     very productive or pleasant two years since the first 
     operation. If it hadn't been for the Pell Grant and the 
     scholarship I received, the devastating effects of my illness 
     would have been compounded. Because of them my life has a new 
     direction, and my children have a chance at furthering their 
     education as well. To lose these benefits now would be like 
     sentencing my kids to prison. They have suffered enough 
     because of my misfortune. The Pell Grant and other grants and 
     scholarships won't put them through Harvard, but they will at 
     least afford my children the opportunities they richly 
     deserve.
       2) My mother always taught me that education was the key to 
     advancement. She also made an example of this by returning to 
     night school to receive her college degree as a single parent 
     with three children. I am sure that financial aid had a 
     significant part to play in helping her achieve her goal. My 
     childhood was spent in subsidized housing and the food in my 
     house was bought with food stamps. Though I never discussed 
     money with her in my childhood, I have gleaned from later 
     conversations with her friends that the four of us lived well 
     below the poverty line. It is very clear to me that one of my 
     mother's strongest motivations for pursuing her degree was to 
     escape the welfare system, and I am positive that she could 
     not have done that without government aid.
       I, like my mother, believe that education is the key to 
     advancement. Without the support of government aid, I would 
     not have the opportunities to prove my theory. My mother died 
     when I was thirteen and I have not spoken with my abusive 
     father since I was four. Although I have legal guardians, 
     they are not responsible for financing my own education. 
     Since I am solely responsible for financing my own education, 
     any deduction in grant monies or loans made available to 
     students has far reaching repercussions for my future.
       My dreams have brought me to where I am, and my hard work 
     has kept me here. I urge you to do all that is in your power 
     to help me and others like myself to continue to reach our 
     goals. We are America's future, but without learning the 
     proper tools in the present the future will be able to build 
     will not be an improvement on today's world. Please don't 
     stop us before we have begun. Please don't allow federal 
     student aid to be cut.
       3) It is difficult growing up when one's parents are 
     separated, but my brother and I managed to do reasonably well 
     despite financial limitations. We worked hard to save money 
     for our college costs, delivering papers and mowing lawns. We 
     worked at a beef packing plant during the summer before our 
     junior years.
       During my first year in college, I worked cleaning other 
     students' rooms to help supplement the scholarships and 
     minimal financial aid I received. At the beginnning of my 
     sophomore year a majority of these scholarships disappeared, 
     as is the nature of most grants earned in high school 
     competitions. I began working three simultaneous jobs on 
     campus so that I could remain in college. The only advantage 
     of this circumstance is that I certainly learned frugality, 
     though I think I'd learned that in my first 18 years. If 
     there were more financial aid, I might have 

[[Page S 11441]]
     been able to work only two jobs, and dedicated more time to my studies. 
     With less financial aid, there is no way I would have been 
     able to obtain my degree.


                                MICHIGAN

       1) I am a law student at Syracuse University. I graduated 
     from the University of Michigan undergraduate program. I am a 
     24 year old African American male. I was born and raised in 
     Flint, Michigan (one of the worst places for a young minority 
     to grow up). My father and sister are incarcerated, my other 
     sister is a recovering crack addict and my mother is 
     currently taking care of 6 grandchildren.
       Over the years, I have tried to do all that I could for my 
     family and am the first in my family to attend college. 
     Without financial aid, this would not have been possible, and 
     without continued financial aid I will not be able to pursue 
     my dream of becoming an attorney. Where I am from role models 
     carry guns, flash money, and kill over a pair of sneakers. 
     There are many youngsters ready to fill the shoes of those 
     ``role models.'' I want those who choose to fill my shoes to 
     have every opportunity and help to do so. Do not cut 
     financial aid! If anything, increase it.
       2) I was a migrant farmworker in the early 1970's in Texas. 
     I traveled to Michigan, and in 1978 was accepted to the 
     University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Because of the poverty of 
     my family, I've had to work very hard for every nickel that 
     I've ever earned. I was also motivated and inspired by my 
     teachers to look at education as my primary goal.
       I have done this. I am a successful professional working at 
     Grand Valley State University as an advocate for other 
     students coming up the pipeline. In all cases financial aid 
     is the bottom line issue on which decisions are to go to 
     college.
       Today, however, government tries to make education a 
     commodity which only the rich can attain. Even in the 1970's 
     I had to work 25-30 hours a week to support my education and 
     continue to contribute to my family.
       I knew that financial aid was the factor that made college 
     possible for me. With the rising costs of tuition, every 
     student must face this issue. The cost of a college education 
     continues to rise much more quickly than the inflation rate. 
     Students therefore must work to supplement their loans, and 
     often stay many more than 4 years.
       The burden of the costs weigh on students long after 
     graduation. They must pay off expensive loans for years.
       Let's not make financial aid a political issue. It should 
     not become a political tool that helps to perpetuate poverty 
     and create a permanent underclass.
       An education not only help individuals become productive 
     citizens, but also helps maintain America's high quality of 
     life. As financial aid becomes more difficult to access, it 
     is more difficult for me to convince young people that 
     education is a worthwhile investment.


                               MINNESOTA

       I am currently a freshman at the Massachusetts Institute of 
     Technology. It has been a dream come true to be able to 
     attend this university. I am from a rural town in Minnesota, 
     and no one in my high school usually goes farther than the 
     Minnesota/North Dakota area for college. After being accepted 
     here last year, I still thought that school at MIT was a 
     dream that would not come true, because of the $28,000 a year 
     price tag.
       After filling out every scholarship application I could 
     find, I received awards of $6,900 for this year, but that 
     still left a big gap in finances. My parents make 
     approximately $45,000 a year, and I also have two younger 
     siblings, so my parents told me they could not help me for 
     school other than transportation to and from school. After 
     receiving my financial aid package, MIT assessed that my 
     parents could pay approximately $5,000, and I could pay 
     approximately $1,400, as well as $2,500 in work study, and 
     $5,500 in government subsidized loans. This made MIT more 
     affordable, but I still had to pay both my parent's and my 
     portions of the bill. So, I worked over 65 hours a week last 
     summer, saving every penny for school.
       I made it through this year with not too many loans, but if 
     government cuts are imposed, I may not be able to afford 
     school here, especially if my loans are not subsidized while 
     I am in school. I would have to take out loans to make 
     monthly payments on other loans! Mounting tuition only adds 
     to the problem.
       I urge you and other members of Congress to keep supporting 
     higher education to your fullest capabilities. Forcing bright 
     students to leave good schools because of mounting costs not 
     only cheats them out of a good education, it also cheats our 
     country. I hope you will support America's future.
                                MISSOURI

       Here is my student aid story. I hope it helps.
       I grew up in Joplin, Missouri--the eldest of three 
     daughters in a lower-middle-class family. Neither of my 
     parents was a college graduate, but my mother instilled in me 
     a love of reading, which led me to pursue a B.A. in English 
     at the University of Missouri/Columbia. Although my parents 
     wanted me to go to college, they could not contribute very 
     much. My first semester at U.M.C., on December 4th, my father 
     committed suicide. I was devastated by his sudden death and 
     considered dropping out of college. However, with the 
     encouragement of many professors who felt that I had 
     potential, I made it through college with government grants 
     and loans--as well as countless part-time jobs--as a 
     waitress, a maid, a cook, a technical writer, and a tutor. I 
     graduated from college in three and a half years, and then 
     earned an M.A. and a Ph.D. in English. Now I teach technical 
     writing and literature at Kansas State University. I've paid 
     back all of my loans.
       In short, financial aid eventually allowed me to be self-
     sufficient, which in turn assured that my youngest sister 
     could attend college ``without'' financial aid. Nobody wants 
     to depend of government aid if funds are available elsewhere. 
     Perhaps your children haven't needed it because your college 
     educations ensured that you earned adequate salaries. But for 
     those children whose parents haven't had the advantages of a 
     college education, government aid is often essential.


                                MONTANA

       I am the director of Student Financial Aid at the College 
     of the Great Falls in Great Falls, Montana. I am a graduate 
     of Rice University in Houston, Texas. And to be frank, my 
     degree would not have been possible without the benefit of 
     Federal Title IV Aid. More important, in the course of my 
     undergraduate career I borrowed--and REPAID--$2750 in Federal 
     National Direct Student Loan monies, and $5000 in Stafford 
     Loans. In addition, I received Federal Pell Grants in each of 
     the seven semesters that it took me to earn my B.A.
       Beyond these resources I worked forty to fifty hours a week 
     year-round to pay the remaining expenses of my college 
     education because my parents could not afford to send me and 
     my sisters to school at the same time.
       Do I appreciate what I have received? Emphatically, yes! I 
     know where my help came from. In return I have given the last 
     ten years of my life to students working as a student 
     financial aid administrator to assist others achieve their 
     educational dreams, as you helped me from 1980 to 1984.
       I believe in this system: the federal, state, and 
     institutional financial aid delivery system. I believe that 
     educating this generation of Americans is the key to success 
     of this nation in the next * * *.


                             NEW HAMPSHIRE

       I am a sophomore at Dartmouth College and am extremely 
     concerned about the Republican's proposed cuts to financial 
     aid. Although Dartmouth is known for its wealthy student 
     body, about sixty percent of its students are on financial 
     aid, and couldn't possibly do without it. I belong to this 
     majority of students who are in need of financial aid. Not 
     only has financial aid allowed me to get an education that 
     challenges and fosters my intellectual growth and curiosity, 
     but it has allowed me to go to college. Without aid, I simply 
     wouldn't even be able to go to any college.
       I graduated from a high school that boasted of many 
     graduates who have gone on to higher education. A friend and 
     I both graduated fifth in our class. Her family is quite 
     wealthy, so a Harvard tuition was a feasible investment. My 
     family, on the other hand, could not even afford a state 
     school education for me. Financial aid and federal loans make 
     up all of my tuition.
       When I was in high school, college was a viable dream. I 
     knew that if I could demonstrate my intellectual capacity and 
     potential, I would be able to continue my education from 
     financial aid. If I had known that financial aid would be 
     reduced and that I couldn't afford to go to college no matter 
     how intelligent I proved to be, I wouldn't have been inspired 
     to do as well. Are America's brightest students destined to 
     receive only a high school education and work only menial 
     jobs for the rest of their lives simply because they can't 
     afford higher education?


                               NEW JERSEY

       1) I am a Junior at Princeton University. I am from Chicago 
     and I attended a public high school located in the heart of 
     the city.
       My family has always taught me to work my hardest, 
     regardless of the odds. I take great pride in saying that my 
     family is very close. When it came time to apply to colleges, 
     I wasn't even thinking of Princeton. My father then said to 
     me, ``you know, maybe you should start shooting for better 
     schools.'' I thought I might as well give it a try. I applied 
     and was accepted. It was the biggest thrill of my life. I had 
     been recognized as someone who had worked hard enough to 
     attend one of the best schools in the world.
       The only way I could afford to attend Princeton is through 
     financial aid, which makes up more than half of my tuition. 
     Every day that I walk down the sidewalk to classes, I take a 
     moment to appreciate my life. I realize that few are given 
     this opportunity.
       Reducing financial aid is the biggest mistake that Congress 
     could make. I strongly support and trust our federal 
     government, but reductions in federal aid would be a great 
     injustice to that trust. Please find another place to make 
     federal cuts because the federal financial aid program, and 
     the student it serves, cannot afford it.
       (2) I am an assistant professor of English at Princeton 
     University and I am writing to express my dismay at the 
     possibility that federal funding of student aid at both the 
     graduate and undergraduate levels might be cut. I am the 
     recipient of such aid--through student loans--at Howard 
     University (where I earned my B.A.) and later at Stanford 
     University (where I earned my Ph.D in English Literature). 
     Without those loans, I could 

[[Page S 11442]]

     not possibly have earned my degrees, and would not now be one 
     of the very few African-American female academics employed by 
     an Ivy League institution.
       I am one of eight children born to an African Methodist 
     Episcopal minister and his wife. I was raised in western 
     Pennsylvania in a small coal mining and steel mill region 
     outside of Pittsburgh. While my father's salary was small, 
     and my mother did housework for pay, all of my parents' 
     children finished high school and four of the eight finished 
     college. All of them did so with the help of some form of 
     federally funded student aid: three of the four who finished 
     college did so on the GI bill; I am the only non-veteran and 
     the only one to have earned a Ph.D.
       The way to that Ph.D was neither continuous nor smooth. I 
     have worked and attended school at the same time since I was 
     in the 10th grade--I held clerical jobs at my high school 
     during the school year (part-time), and worked in various 
     local firms during the summers. But while I was accustomed to 
     having to work and go to school at the same time, I found 
     myself in great difficulty once I started undergraduate 
     school. I worked 32 hours a week to pay for my education and 
     dropped out of undergraduate school in the middle of my 
     second year because I could not continue working the long 
     hours and keeping my grade point average up at the same time. 
     During the next eight years I worked various jobs in 
     Washington, D.C.: I was a waitress, a line worker at the 
     Government Printing Office, a bookstore clerk at the 
     Smithsonian Museum of History Book store, a receptionist, 
     secretary, and word processor at various research firms, and 
     a night shift work processor at various law firms in 
     Washington, D.C.
       I could have continued doing clerical work, but I really 
     wanted to finish my college education. To that end, I 
     enrolled at Howard University and finished my undergraduate 
     degree in June of 1979 because, and only because, I was able 
     to borrow a subsidized undergraduate student loan that helped 
     me pay for my tuition and fees at Howard. I worked 40 hours a 
     week and took care of my child because while the loan helped 
     me with my college costs, I still had to pay rent, buy 
     groceries, pay for child care; in short, I had to work to 
     sustain life for my child and myself, therefore, the loans 
     were absolutely necessary in order for me to pay for and 
     finish my college education.
       During my first year of graduate school while at Howard 
     University, I applied to Stanford University's graduate 
     program in English and was accepted. I received a graduate 
     fellowship from Stanford which paid my tuition and fees, but 
     which only supplied enough of a monthly stipend for a single 
     person to live on very frugally: The living amount (beginning 
     in September of 1980) was approximately $5,000 per year. 
     While I could have half-starved my way through graduate 
     school as many of my friends did, I could not take care of my 
     child on that money. Once again the federal student loan 
     program came to my rescue. I borrowed from the student loan 
     program for six of the seven years I was in graduate school. 
     My seventh year I won a national doctoral fellowship at 
     Williams College and finished my dissertation there before 
     successfully going into the job market.
       When I finished my Ph.D. in August of 1987, I was 
     considerably in debt. However, I was also immediately 
     employed by the University of Texas at Austin where I taught 
     three years. I have been employed by Princeton since 
     September of 1990. And I have, without pause, continued to 
     pay my student loans. I continue to pay them even as I write 
     this. They were the best investment that I could have made in 
     my future; and they represent an investment in me that my 
     country made. Now, I am a gainfully employed, tax-paying 
     citizen in a higher tax bracket, and my son has just 
     completed his first year of college at the University of 
     Maryland. I guess you (or anyone else) could say that I'm a 
     federal student loan success story; but more than that, I am 
     paying back interest that will help to underwrite other such 
     successes.
       Please do not allow this program to be cut. I could not 
     have gone through school without that aid. And if we care 
     about ensuring that inherited wealth--or even simply 
     inherited middle class standing--are not the only roads to 
     success, then federal funding of student aid is one of the 
     very few ways, that ambitious and hard-working citizens, not 
     fortunate enough to have been born in wealthy families, can 
     make themselves part of the productive forces of this 
     country.
       3) I am writing to stress my opposition to cuts made in 
     federal funding of student aid. I am very concerned for the 
     future of this country, and the direction it is heading. 
     Reducing funding for student is potentially dangerous for the 
     future of this country, for individuals self-esteem and 
     image, and the cycle continues.
       I returned to school as a single mother, in Flint, 
     Michigan--and without the aid of the government I would never 
     have gotten an education, never graduated at the very top of 
     my class-and asked to deliver the commencement address at 
     University of Michigan last year and I would not be in 
     graduate school right now, at Rutgers University.
       As a former welfare mother, a woman who has no family 
     support, as a committed citizen I would never have realized 
     my potential and never discovered the importance of giving 
     back to society if society had not first invested in me. The 
     struggle has been long, tedious, discouraging enough given 
     the political opinions about both welfare and single mothers. 
     With cuts in student aid, my life as I know it, and the 
     future possibilities for my son as I now foresee it, would be 
     non-existent. I urge you to do everything possible to stop 
     the cuts. In fact, I would encourage increased funding in 
     student aid. It has made all the difference in the world for 
     me.
                                NEW YORK

       1) I am recent college graduate. My student loans have left 
     me with an $18,000 debt.
       Please tell the Senate that cuts in student aid will change 
     the face of education as we know it. Very few families can 
     afford tuition. I come from a middle class family. Because my 
     parents' salaries were deemed higher than the typically 
     financially disadvantaged family, I was not given much 
     financial aid from any school. High tuition forced my parents 
     to take out loans for themselves in addition to my loans. 
     They also dipped into their retirement accounts. No family 
     can afford to take out $18,000-$25,000 out of their yearly 
     income. Without help of student loans, higher education in 
     quality institutions would be a pipe dream for many families.
       2) Thank you for your continued opposition to the 
     Republicans' efforts to cut funding for student aid. This 
     policy, which sacrifices long-term investment in human 
     capital for a short-term and limited savings, is extremely 
     misguided. Student aid provides upward social mobility for 
     working class, poor, and immigrant people. It's not welfare, 
     it's not a giveaway, it's an investment. But instead of 
     giving you statistics, let me relate how the combination of 
     student aid and guaranteed loans has helped me.
       In 1981, I was 28 years old and was alternately collecting 
     unemployment or working a dead-end job in a copy shop for 
     $4.25 an hour. I got tired of trying to make ends meet so I 
     decided to return to school and applied for admission to 
     Baruch College, the business college of the City University 
     of New York (CUNY), to study about computer information 
     systems. I didn't know much about student aid resources at 
     that time, and CUNY was just barely affordable. Because of my 
     income status, I was able to receive a deep discount on my 
     tuition (although at that time CUNY's tuition was less than 
     $500 per semester) through Pell Grants. I was also able to 
     make ends meet through a combination of National Defense 
     Student Loans (which I have since paid back in full) and New 
     York State Guaranteed Student Loans (which I will have paid 
     back in one more year, at 9% interest, so it is not a 
     giveaway!)
       I was able to continue from Baruch's bachelor's in business 
     administration program to its masters program, and in 1985 I 
     graduated with a Master of Science in Computer Information 
     Systems Degree. I most likely could not have finished these 
     studies without the support of the government student aid 
     programs.
       I have since earned my Ph.D in Computer Science (which I 
     was able to pay for without government student aid) and am 
     now teaching full time at Baruch College as an assistant 
     professor.
       The point of my story is that the government's student aid 
     programs provided me with the opportunity to change from a 
     marginal member of society to a very productive one. I now 
     can pay my own way in society, and contribute quite a 
     sizeable portion of my income to society paying taxes and 
     making charitable donations. Reliable and realistic student 
     aid programs made this possible for me and millions like me. 
     And in case anyone asks, I am a second-generation Irish 
     Catholic whose father was a blue-collar worker in warehouses 
     all his life. I do not fit the stereotype that people use to 
     demonize recipients of student aid.
       Please continue to remind your Senate colleagues, 
     especially those from New York, that it would be extremely 
     short sighted for the federal government to eviscerate the 
     student aid programs. In the long run, the lost tax revenues, 
     greater burdens on social supports, and the less trained and 
     less competitive work force will cost the country much more 
     than the cost of the programs. And in my case, the proposed 
     capital gains tax cuts (which will be funded at the expense 
     of realistic student aid programs) will not foster my 
     investment in the economy nearly as much as did the student 
     aid programs available to me. Those programs enabled me to 
     earn enough money to be able to invest in the economy in the 
     first place.
       Please remind your colleagues that education is an 
     investment, NOT a welfare program! Thanks for sticking up for 
     the students.
       3) I am a first year student at New York University. It is 
     one of the largest and also one of the most expensive private 
     schools in America. But, unlike the Ivy League schools with 
     comparable tuitions, there is not an enormous endowment for 
     scholarships. I knew that money would be a problem because my 
     parents are divorced and my mother owns a small business 
     which does not make much money.
       I am a straight A student with an SAT score of 1490, so I 
     felt sure that I would qualify for all of the extra money 
     that is supposedly out there somewhere. So, I started 
     applying for outside scholarships from private corporations 
     and philanthropists. I applied for well over five hundred 
     scholarships, and I was not rejected for any of them. But, I 
     also did not get money for any of them. What I got instead 
     was five hundred post 

[[Page S 11443]]
     cards informing me that none of the corporations or other private 
     sources give scholarships any longer. It seems that because 
     of the tough economy, private companies do not have any money 
     to spare anymore, or perhaps education is just not considered 
     to be a priority in this country anymore.
       There is such a large difference between my family's income 
     and the cost of attending college that I knew that I would 
     not be able to go to NYU without some sort of financial aid. 
     Luckily, I qualified for a federal Stafford loan. Without 
     this loan, I honestly would not have been able to go to 
     college. I think that it is absolutely ludicrous that our 
     government would even consider cutting financial aid. 
     Education is so important, and I think that something is 
     seriously wrong with a government that does not use its 
     resources to help people who cannot afford to go to school. 
     There are so many people my age who have the drive, the 
     intelligence, and the determination to make wonderful 
     students, and it is not fair that those of us who come from 
     poor or middle income families are not allowed access to the 
     same education as the wealthy.
       Today, you hear so much about equal opportunity, but at the 
     same time, there is such enormous injustice in the 
     educational system of this country. I cannot believe that 
     anyone would ever consider cutting student aid programs. I 
     know that the government has a very tough job in balancing 
     the budget now that we are so far in debt, but sacrificing 
     the future of this country is not the answer. Because we 
     really are the future of this country, I hate to think what 
     will happen if we all come of age without an education.
       There is a great misconception that there are lots of 
     private scholarships out there to be claimed. And we are not 
     willing to ``find a cheaper school'' as I was told on many 
     occasions. I refuse to settle for a mediocre education while 
     students with the same or even lower grades and definitely a 
     lower level of determination get the best education in the 
     country simply because they come from a family that has more 
     money. We, as the future of this country, demand equal 
     opportunities. We demand an end to the tyranny of the rich. 
     We demand an education. Once upon a time the government did 
     not think that that request was such a frivolous one. It 
     would be tragic to think that they have changed their minds. 
     Please tell the government that this investment is the most 
     important one that it could possibly make.


                             NORTH CAROLINA

       I thought that Congress would be interested in stories 
     about how student aid has changed lives. I have a story for 
     you, and I'll try to keep it brief. I need to go to bed, 
     because I have to work in the morning.
       I used to be a welfare mom. My ex-husband used to slap the 
     kids around, drunk or sober, and I decided that my kids and I 
     couldn't afford to live that way any more. My two sons were 
     becoming violent, and I didn't want my two daughters growing 
     up as victims, so I left him.
       It made him pretty angry when we walked out, so he refused 
     to pay child support. It's obvious that four children cannot 
     be supported on minimum wage, so I decided to use welfare and 
     student aid and go to college.
       I went to a community college for two years, and then was 
     accepted at the University of North Carolina School of 
     Journalism and Mass Communications. I have one class left to 
     take before graduating in August.
       What a difference education has made for me! There is no 
     way I could have gone to Carolina without every penny of 
     scholarship money, loans, and Pell grants I could muster. It 
     would have been out of the question. I'd be stuck on welfare, 
     or poorer working without it. My college career has meant 
     more to me than I can possibly relate in a letter, and I've 
     had some of the best professors our educational system has to 
     offer, and learned much more than the skills I can use every 
     day on my job. I'm not on welfare any more, but write for a 
     weekly newspaper. It's a start, and I believe that one day 
     I'll move on to something that pays more, and will enable me 
     to pay more taxes!
       My college education has changed my life, and the lives of 
     my children. I think they understand the value of education 
     now, and will be proud when their mama actually graduates. I 
     know they're glad we're not on welfare anymore.
       If I had more time, money, and childcare, I'd come and 
     speak on the Senate floor.
       2) The idea of reducing the amount of federal monies for 
     students scares the hell out of me. You see I am a first-
     generation college student. I'm getting ready to start my 
     senior year of college, and plan to go on to graduate school. 
     My family only supports me in that they fall into one of the 
     brackets which qualify for federal aid. My mom only went to 
     high school and my dad didn't even finish junior high.
       My Mom, who was a single parent with two kids for a long 
     time, imbued me with a sense of personal responsibility. I 
     have worked since I was 13 and am paying all my own bills in 
     school. Because of federal aid I was able to attend a small 
     liberal arts school where I have flourished and become, in my 
     humble opinion, an educated and socially conscious member of 
     society.
       I'm involved in community service activities through a 
     scholarship I receive that allows me to spend approximately 
     ten hours per week during the academic year doing service. I 
     have worked with underprivileged kids and built homes in 
     inner-city Pittsburgh. I've coordinated the first-ever 
     student-initiated service learning conference for college 
     folks on HIV/AIDS issues.
       Mr. Kennedy, you and your colleagues in the Senate give me 
     hope that this country can cure its social ills. I want to 
     help you do that, but I can't unless I receive a quality 
     education that prepares me for the rough future ahead. I plan 
     on getting a master's degree in either social work or 
     community planning.
       Thank you very much for listening to me, and godspeed.
                                OKLAHOMA

       I'm writing to plead that Congress pass no legislation that 
     would reduce or eliminate student financial aid. Although I'm 
     no longer a student, I would never have made it past my first 
     year of college without financial aid.
       I returned to school after serving six years on active duty 
     in the Army. Now, you may think that the Army provides 
     substantial financial assistance for school but that's not 
     truly the case. The only assistance the Veteran's Educational 
     Assistance Program, which provided a mere $180 per month. 
     This is not enough to pay rent, let alone buy food, pay bills 
     and pay tuition and textbooks for college. I left the 
     military because I wanted an education but was suffering 
     because of this desire to improve myself.
       To try to make ends meet, I entered the Army Reserves and 
     worked part time. This still didn't meet my expenses. During 
     my first year in college my car was repossessed, my phone, 
     gas, water, and electricity disconnected (I was studying by 
     the light of a little oil lamp) and I was sued as a result of 
     my inability to pay my bills. I had resorted to selling my 
     blood plasma twice a week in order to gain the money to keep 
     myself fed. I tried to obtain assistance through welfare 
     programs, such as the Low Income Energy Assistance Program, 
     but was informed that, in spite of being poor enough to 
     qualify, I was ineligible because I was a student.
       Finally, Financial Aid realized that I wasn't making 
     sufficient money to be able to go to school and survive at 
     the same time. I was awarded loans, federal grants and 
     student work-study. Using this financial assistance, I was 
     able to complete my BS degree and continued on to obtain my 
     Ph.D. Without this assistance, I would never have been able 
     to make it past the first semester of college.
       Please do whatever it takes to discourage the Congress from 
     limiting financial aid to students. A good education is not 
     something that should be restricted to the economic elite.


                              PENNSYLVANIA

       1) All of us in academia are shocked at the intended 
     proposals to cut money for higher education and the arts. A 
     skeptic might consider this the natural reaction of just 
     another special interest group out for its own gain. I assure 
     you this is not the case. There are very few true academics 
     left in this country today. Already the funding is scarce, 
     and many qualified applicants never get to pursue the 
     education they desire--the education they are willing to 
     sacrifice to acquire. No one enters academia or arts for the 
     money. We do it because we feel driven to it, because we see 
     something valuable in it that is worth pursuing and 
     preserving. The sacrifices far outweigh even the social 
     prestige that a lucky few acquire. Therefore, we are not 
     asking a lot. We do not require the billions that go toward 
     building high-tech airplanes and such, just a little money so 
     that the dedicated few can preserve what are our most 
     treasured possessions: our knowledge, our wisdom, and our 
     culture.
       When I think about how much money is spent on the average 
     garbage TV show or movie in comparison to the ballet, the 
     symphony, or the study of advanced subjects, I feel like 
     crying, but all I can do is laugh because it is so 
     ridiculous. As a result, our children's heads are filled with 
     garbage an violence. They have no idea of even their own 
     cultural and intellectual treasures, let alone those of their 
     ancestors. Without a few generations, we stand to lose so 
     much just for the sake of a few dollars. But I cannot think 
     of any money better spent. We here at the University of 
     Pennsylvania work six or seven days a week year round, often 
     way into the night. Do you know how much I earn on my present 
     Foreign Language Area Studies scholarship? $800 per month. 
     People on welfare make more than I do. Even people working at 
     fast food chains make more than that, and they get nights and 
     weekends off. But you know what? I do not regret it at all. I 
     feel so privileged to be part of such a great institution. I 
     love my work and I love my life. I do not mind being poor 
     because my knowledge makes me rich.
       Moreover, when I graduate with my Ph.D. in Indian 
     languages, I will have the joy of sharing that knowledge with 
     countless students over the years. This is my life's goal, my 
     life's work. All I want is that people like me be allowed to 
     make those sacrifices which will enrich us all as Americans, 
     and contribute to a better society.
       2) I am a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania here 
     in Philadelphia. I know that I could write forever about the 
     merits of student aid on a national scale, but I feel that I 
     should get right to the point by showing what cuts in student 
     aid would do to my family, my education, and my future.
       I was born in a poor section of Cleveland, Ohio, where I 
     still reside. I am the second person and the first man from 
     either side of my family to have the opportunity to go to 

[[Page S 11444]]
     college. I am here because of several reasons, not the least of which 
     is the generous financial assistance that I have received 
     from the University, student loans, federal assistance, and 
     private scholarships. If it were not for this type of 
     financial help, I could not think of attending any college, 
     much less one of the caliber of the University of 
     Pennsylvania. Also, my mother, a graduate of Case Western 
     Reserve University in Cleveland, has courageously decided to 
     return to college to pursue her doctorate in Anthropology. 
     She is currently in her first year of study at the University 
     of Florida where she has justifiably earned a full 
     scholarship with a small stipend. The catch in my mother's 
     situation: she is not allowed to hold a job as a condition of 
     her scholarship.
       This means that she, with the stipend as her only source of 
     income, cannot contribute to my education in any way. My 
     father, who recently has found new employment, is left, along 
     with me, to pay a significant amount of money to the 
     University which we can barely afford now. We have trouble 
     paying the bills as it is; it would be even more difficult 
     (and perhaps impossible) to do it if student aid is cut.
       I can barely afford school. As a young Black man growing up 
     in an urban environment, I have faced the dangers that the 
     streets present to us. I have seen a man die. I have buried 
     my murdered cousin. I have been harassed and nearly beaten by 
     police. However, when I see my young cousin who at 10 has 
     proven to be an excellent student and a budding young 
     botanist, I see the potential that is in so many young 
     children that are in the urban neighborhoods of these United 
     States.
       If you truly care about the training of the future leaders 
     of this nation, then I would urge you to remember my words. 
     Remember them as the vote on this issue comes up. Think about 
     the children--your children--your constituents who elected 
     you--and what you are in Washington to do. Listen to your 
     conscience.
       3) I'm not sure if I'm addressing you properly, but I 
     wanted to open a line of communication I was interested to 
     hear that there is a possibility that student aid program 
     funding may be cut. I'm a twenty-five year old ``non-
     traditional'' student at Temple University in Philadelphia. 
     The federal and state aid make it possible for me to maintain 
     my status as a full-time student. I have a learning 
     disability that requires special arrangements for both 
     testing, and note taking. This unfortunately makes employment 
     concurrent to schoolwork next to impossible. I have managed 
     to volunteer a few hours of my time, when I'm able, to our 
     Disability Resources and Services center on our campus. In 
     addition, I've been hired by the University as a Residential 
     Assistant in our resident halls for next year. My total 
     income for next year, should provide me with only 33% of the 
     money needed to attend school full-time. Because my 
     disability was not recognized sooner than two years ago, a 
     ``traditional'' college education was not possible upon 
     graduation.
       I appeal to you as a student who is trying to serve himself 
     and his fellow students, to please consider the impact and 
     burden that further limitations in student aid would cause to 
     those in my position. Please don't take away the future for 
     me.
       Thank you for your time, and I trust that you will make a 
     decision that serves those of us that rely on aid to provide 
     a future.


                               TENNESSEE

       1) Though I am a Republican, this is one issue about which 
     the party and I disagree. I will be a sophomore at Boston 
     College next fall, and my attendance is contingent upon the 
     amount of financial aid my family receives. It has always 
     been my dream to go to school in Boston, and so far I have 
     been able to live out that dream; however, if I were to lose 
     any federal aid, I would be forced to drop out of BC. My 
     financial aid package includes everything from work study to 
     grants and scholarships, and Stafford and Perkins loans, each 
     at the maximum amount. I beg all of the members of the Senate 
     to make budget cuts elsewhere. Do not take away my dream.
       Don't ruin our country's future by denying financially 
     challenged students the opportunity to learn the priceless 
     lessons that college and graduate school can teach us. 
     American society requires a college degree, if not a post-
     graduate degree. How is my generation supposed to enter the 
     competitive job market without such degrees? If the Senate 
     cuts federal student aid, you might as well make increases in 
     unemployment and welfare benefits. There are too many 
     qualified students who would be forced into poverty if they 
     could not rely on federal student aid. Please do not do this 
     to me, my family, my friends, my generation, and our country.
       2) Federal and private financial aid have paid for the 
     majority of my college education. I come from a very low-
     income (less than $3,000 per year) family in upper eastern 
     Tennessee. We have a somewhat colloquial lifestyle--I spent 
     years without running water and electricity (and I'm only 22 
     now!). We are basically a farming family. I am the first 
     person in my family to graduate college and I would not have 
     been able to accomplish this without aid. Contrary to popular 
     belief, poor people do not ``live off the dole'' constantly, 
     nor are we completely unable to ``make a contribution to 
     society.'' Yet, because the military is running out of places 
     from which to steal money, my government is threatening to 
     take these opportunities away from me.
       Had these budget cuts been implemented during my first 
     years in college, I would not have been able to afford to 
     come here. My life would be very different. I would probably 
     have been forced to find work in a factory. I urge Congress 
     to think of the human aspect of student aid and to realize 
     what repercussions your decisions might have.
                                 TEXAS

       1) I am a first year student at Princeton University. I 
     attended high school in a small town just outside of Austin, 
     Texas. My high school was not known for sending students to 
     Ivy League schools. In fact, it struggles to send students to 
     college at all. The drop-out rate is about 60% and the school 
     district is one of the poorest in the state. My acceptance to 
     Princeton was a great shock to all of my peers. I overwhelmed 
     them that they could know someone who was attending Princeton 
     or at least about to. To my peers, Princeton was this rich, 
     white conservative school that only the Vanderbilts and the 
     Kennedys of our nation attend. Never in the minds of my peers 
     would such a school allow a poor Mexican girl from Del Valle 
     to attend it.
       Of course, I could not have attended without the help of 
     financial aid. My father is in prison right now and my mother 
     is recovering from a heroin addiction. During my senior year 
     of high school (about a week after I found out about my 
     acceptance to Princeton), my mother abandoned my younger 
     sister and me for her drugs. My aunt gladly took us in, but 
     being on welfare she was hardly capable of feeding two extra 
     mouths. Money was tight while I was there but we always 
     managed. There was no way we could have managed to pay 
     $28,000 a year just to make my life dream possible.
       If I do not continue to receive financial aid, my career 
     here at Princeton will be short-lived and my struggle and 
     those of other like myself will have been in vain.
       2) I am a 41 year old Hispanic male, father of 4 and 
     preparing to take my comprehensive exams for my doctorate in 
     January, 1996. We were field workers in Michigan and I recall 
     asking my father why we had to work in the fields and he 
     would tell me it was because he did not have any education. I 
     was in the 7th grade when I told my father as we were picking 
     cherries that I was going to get a doctorate and thus I would 
     never have to pick in the fields. My dad encouraged me to do 
     it. At the time, I had no idea what a doctorate was but I had 
     looked it up in the dictionary and read that a doctorate was 
     the highest degree obtainable. I graduated high school and 
     went on to Central Michigan University but dropped out to 
     take care of my mother and eight brothers and sisters after 
     my father dies in a car accident.
       After working hard and not making any economical gains, I 
     told my wife in the summer of 1987 that I was going to go 
     back to college to get a Ph.D. At the time, I had two 
     children, my wife worked at home due to the high cost of day 
     care. I could barely make ends meet with my three jobs 
     working as a pizza delivery driver, a bus driver, and a 
     custodian. I knew that I could not afford to go to school but 
     thank God for people like you that helped to provide 
     financial aid that my family needed in order for me to attend 
     school.
       While attending school, I did not quit my three jobs 
     because I still could not afford to and I needed the health 
     insurance that the custodian position provided. I kept 
     telling my wife how great it was going to be when I finished 
     my education but inside I had doubts that I would be able to 
     complete my education due to financial reasons.
       However, I had overlooked one thing. As I received more 
     education, I was able to take higher paying jobs. In 1989, I 
     took a position at the University of North Texas Financial 
     Aid Office. The position did not pay that much so I continued 
     delivering pizzas on the weekends. Often I would work 34 
     hours from Friday to Sunday. In time, my position at the 
     Financial Aid Office was upgraded and I was able to quit the 
     pizza delivery job. I received my undergraduate degree in 
     1990 from the University of North Texas, my Master's degree 
     in 1991, and began my doctoral work. I was recruited for a 
     position from another department of the university. I left 
     the financial aid office, and took the position of Research 
     Scientist. Later, I was again recruited, this time for 
     Assistant Dean of Students. But, when I told my supervisors 
     of the position, they gave me another offer which is my 
     current position as Assistant to the Dean at the School of 
     Community Service at the University of North Texas. I am also 
     teaching two classes in Race and Ethnic Relations per 
     academic year at UNT. All of this has been made possible 
     because of financial aid.
       3) I am a graduating medical students at Baylor College of 
     Medicine in Houston, Texas. Many people here are very nervous 
     now that we hear that loan subsidies may be cut. As a student 
     who received subsidized Stafford and Perkins loans while here 
     in medical school, I wanted to voice my opinion that these 
     subsidies are not only of great benefit, but an integral part 
     of allowing us to become the physicians this country needs.
       Let me state that as an undergraduate, I did not receive 
     any federal aid because my parents had planned for my college 
     educational needs. They saved enough to pay for four years of 
     college which has helped me immensely. However, my parents, 
     who I consider to be of a middle class background, did not 
     have the finances to pay for medical school. Student loans 
     were my means to stay in school. 

[[Page S 11445]]

       People have argued that students frivolously spend this 
     money, but I assure you that our financial aid department had 
     a yearly budget that helped us meet our needs and we could 
     not obtain loans beyond the monetary amount in their budget. 
     In fact, there were crucial times in our lives that were 
     never covered in the Baylor budget such as fees for taking 
     the medical licensure exams, parking fees for the medical 
     center, and residency application and interview costs.
       I still had to borrow $70,000 over my four years to make 
     ends meet. If I did not have federal loans, my bill would 
     have increased by as much as 30%. I am astounded that 
     Congress would consider cutting student loans. I know our 
     country is looking for ways to increase the physician numbers 
     in underserved areas and increase the number of generalist 
     physicians. Yet, Congress would consider cutting college 
     loans that help us to contain our debt load and pursue 
     careers in areas that we love but do not pay as well. Please 
     understand that government loans have not only allowed me to 
     become a physician, they have allowed me to pursue my career 
     goals to be a primary care pediatrician serving a hometown 
     community that needs me. I hope that you are willing to allow 
     the students that follow behind me to have the same 
     opportunities to serve the medical community, their families, 
     and the patients that need them.
       4) I am a single parent trying to get my Bachelor's Degree 
     at the University of Texas at Arlington. I have been in 
     school for 7 years working full-time and going to school 
     part-time. Each year I see tuition go up, fees go up, book 
     costs skyrocket, and less money to go to school on.
       The reason I depend on federal financial aid is to get out 
     of poverty. At the present time, my salary is $1.00 higher 
     than the cutoff for food stamps and any public assistance. I 
     do not receive my child support because I cannot locate my 
     ex-husband. I want to make a better life for my daughter and 
     myself. My education is the answer to bettering my life. When 
     you cut funding, you guarantee that I will not get an 
     education.
       Even though I am a Republican and have been for more than 
     20 years, I might just vote Democrat the next time around.


                                VERMONT

       I attend an elite liberal arts college in Vermont, a long 
     way from my home in Tennessee. I was raised by a single 
     mother, who is also attending college. My financial aid award 
     from Middlebury totaled more dollars than her salary. Still, 
     I am walking a thin line. Without the same level of financial 
     aid from Middlebury next year, I will not be able to return. 
     I am not the only person in this situation. The government 
     loan and grant programs are absolutely essential for me to 
     continue my education here. Government loans would also be 
     necessary for me to attend the state universities in 
     Tennessee, and the prospect of cuts in student aid concern me 
     very much. The GOP has become the party of greed. Please 
     don't allow these cuts to take place.


                               WASHINGTON

       1) Normally, I support the Republican viewpoint, but I must 
     oppose cuts to student aid. This country appears to be 
     sliding from the forefront of science and technology, and the 
     only way to keep our status as world leaders in the sciences 
     is to educate our citizens. The cost of higher education has 
     skyrocketed. At my alma mater, Central Washington University, 
     tuition has doubled over the past ten years. The cost of 
     textbooks and housing has similarly risen.
       I would not have been able to attend college--I received my 
     B.S., M.S. and am now working on my Ph.D.--without financial 
     assistance. I do not view this as a handout--most of my aid 
     is in the form of loans that I am currently paying back. I 
     believe that making cuts in student aid will just hurt this 
     country in great ways.
       2) I am a Junior at Western Washington University in 
     Washington State. My ultimate goal is to go into medicine, 
     something I have aspired to since my Freshman year of high 
     school. I went to a small high school and received little 
     help by the way of scholarships when I left, even though I 
     was Senior class president and ranked 4th in my class. The 
     money was just not there. I did not worry because I knew I 
     could still go to school with the help of financial aid.
       If it had not been for work-study programs, loans, and 
     grants, I would not be pursuing this goal today. And now you 
     say that this aid may be cut. Do you intend to revert back to 
     the time when only an elite few got an education and the rest 
     of the country worked for peanuts? What are you thinking?
       Why is education becoming such a challenge to receive? This 
     is scary to me, so scary because my life-line right now, my 
     reason for living, is the fact that I am going to school. I 
     am learning so much and growing so much, that I can hardly 
     believe how narrow-minded I used to be.
       My parents' contribution to my education has been zero. We 
     are already in that bracket which states that we make too 
     much money to receive very much aid. Their paychecks will 
     never allow for a $10,000 which would be the effect on my 
     aid. How can I make you understand that this is completely 
     out of the question? You are taking from me my right to 
     pursue happiness, which I may need to remind you is a 
     Constitutional right. If I cannot go to school (and without 
     aid, I cannot go to school), I will have lost the one aspect 
     of my life that I value the most. And I know that I am not 
     alone. For my one story there are thousands more like it. The 
     livelihood of this country depends on its youth and that 
     youth's ability to get educated. If you take that away from 
     us, you will be responsible for the destruction, demise, and 
     collapse of this country.
       3) When I approached my father about going to college about 
     ten years ago, he said, ``Sure, great idea, but don't expect 
     me to pay for it.'' Based on that statement, I knew I was on 
     my own; I decided to do my best in school and try to get into 
     West Point, or another service academy. I decided that I 
     wanted to go to college and that I was going to get there 
     somehow.
       As a female, I knew that was a long shot. In the early 
     80's, when I was in high school, the first female cadets were 
     just graduating from West Point. I applied and over the 
     course of a year I finally got word from my Congressman that 
     he had nominated me to attend the U.S. Military Academy at 
     West Point, over almost 500 other candidates, a number of 
     whom were my classmates and friends. Due to a knee injury and 
     surgery, and the subsequent effect on my grades, West Point 
     did not accept me, though that nomination is still one of the 
     most important accomplishments of my life.
       One of the routes to college had now closed and I had to 
     take another look at how badly I wanted to get a degree. I 
     worked for a few years and decided that if I really wanted to 
     go where I wanted and do what I wanted to do, I had to go 
     back to school. My mother (a college graduate with two 
     degrees who returned to school in her late thirties and 
     graduated thanks to government student loans), was, at that 
     time working at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and 
     made me an offer I could not refuse. She said that I could 
     move up to Alaska with her and she would take care of the 
     roof over my head if I attended school full-time. The offer 
     was great, but once again I faced the dilemma of where to get 
     the money to pay for my tuition and book fees. I took my mom 
     up on her offer based solely on the reassuring words of the 
     financial aid counselor that government student loans were 
     available.
       I did go to Alaska and in the four years I was there, 
     graduated with a degree in history and a minor in Japanese. I 
     was the first person on my father's side of the family ever 
     to graduate from college. I have been paying my loans back 
     for two years now and every payment has been on time. I owe a 
     great deal to the government's student loan program, and it 
     goes way beyond money.
       How can one base such a program on dollars alone? My mom 
     was a welfare mom for awhile after my parents divorced in the 
     late 1970's. But, her desire to go further, get an education, 
     and the assistance of student loans got her off welfare and 
     helped her to earn her degrees and make a great living. She 
     set a great example for me in terms of how far an education 
     can take you, and I am proud to say this is one government-
     supported program I am proud to be a second generation 
     recipient.


                               WISCONSIN

       1) Prior to enrolling in undergraduate school I was a high 
     school drop-out and lived on the Bad River Indian Reservation 
     in Odanah, Wisconsin. I lived off of the USDA food 
     distribution program and relief monies. In addition to being 
     just another impoverished Native-American Indian, I am deaf. 
     During my undergraduate studies I was fortunate enough to 
     have received grants from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a 
     Wisconsin Deaf grant, a vocational rehabilitation grant, and 
     a Pell grant for each year that I attended Northland College.
       After receiving my BS I found that I was over $10,000 in 
     debt from student loans that I needed in spite of my many 
     grants. Most of my graduating class weren't so lucky. Many of 
     them had debts in excess of $50,000, making repayment a 
     doubtful proposition without first earning a more advanced 
     degree and further accumulation of debts. I can not over-
     emphasize that without the Pell program and the student loan 
     program, I would not have been able to be where I am today. 
     Nor would I be going in the direction that I am.
       Being Indian and deaf in Ashland County, Wisconsin, spells 
     long term poverty. Because I've gone to school and earned 
     fellowships, I have not had to seek relief monies or 
     participate in USDA commodity food distribution programs. I 
     feel that it is important to ask what is the rate of return 
     on education dollars. My own experience is one where no more 
     relief monies are required by me. When I consider the 
     situations of other students I know, I find the Republicans' 
     proposed cuts amazing.
       2) I understand that we need to balance the budget, yet if 
     we don't educate the people how can we compete in the world 
     and pay off the debt when the next generation won't have good 
     paying jobs so we can put money back into the system. I'm 
     very proud of my parents, and my parents are very proud of 
     me. Everytime I go back to school my Mom says, ``I'm very 
     proud of you. You have chances I only dreamed of.'' To have 
     my mother say that makes me realize how far I could go. I 
     don't want the one dream I have, of going places my mother 
     only dreamed of going, be cut short because of money. That 
     hurts me deeply and I only hope that you see it my way. 
     During the summer I work at least 18 hours a day and my body 
     aches at night. I work every chance I get and still financial 
     aid is like a life preserver which keeps me afloat. If 
     financial aid is cut, my dreams may drown.
     

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