California State Assembly passes middle class scholarship bill, awaits Senate vote - Polidicks

[quote][B]The California State Assembly passed the Middle Class Scholarship bill with a bipartisan vote of 54-25 on Aug. 13.[/B] The approval of Assembly Bill 1500 by the Assembly symbolizes a big step closer toward higher education affordability for California’s middle class students. The Middle Class Scholarship is geared toward [B] helping students from middle class families with an income of up to $150,000 reduce tuition fees by two-thirds.[/B] “Anytime you can get a bipartisan two-person vote, that clearly shows that there’s a lot of amends for the bill. We’re very encouraged by the efforts of student groups all over the state, including at UC Davis, who have been very strong in terms of helping us get the word out and get support built up for the Middle Class Scholarship,” said John Vigna, spokesperson to California Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez. “We just essentially need to keep the pressure and make sure that a handful of senators who need to pass the bill do the right thing and vote ‘yes.’” According to Vigna, the upcoming weeks will be crucial in ensuring that senators understand the importance and positive effects the Middle Class Scholarship will have on the state of California and make the right choice. Many students remain optimistic about the bill’s passage in the Senate. “There are no substantial scholarships for middle class, Caucasian women, regardless of my honor roll GPA. Even if there were scholarships out there for someone in my predicament, I hardly have the time to apply for them between work and school,” said fourth-year political science major Angel Rogers. “I am very optimistic about AB 1500 and the Middle Class Scholarship because I want my brother and sisters to go to college, but I would never want them to have to go through my experience. I only wish that the Middle Class Scholarship and AB 1500 had passed sooner.” [B]In order for the Middle Class Scholarship – which is composed of two bills – to be funded, both AB 1500 and AB 1501 must pass and each must take effect. AB 1501 is the scholarship itself and AB 1500 will provide the funding for the scholarship by closing a corporate tax loophole.[/B] “If corporations are going to be paying for our tuition breaks in the form of taxes, I don’t see anything wrong about this. I think it’s a great way to transfer wealth and make this state a place for more equal opportunities,” said third-year economics student Henry Shin. The passing of AB 1500 indicates that it will now be considered by the State Senate along with AB 1501 which passed earlier this year. If both bills pass the Senate, it will be considered by the governor. “We’re all very excited. This bill addresses a very critical issue facing the state which is obviously higher education affordability and tax fairness for California businesses. But it’s also, I think, symbolic of our larger efforts to rebuild and stop reacting to the recession that happened a few years ago,” Vigna said. [B]The Middle Class Scholarship would save an estimated 42,000 UC students approximately $8,169 and 150,000 California State University (CSU) students $4,000 annually.[/B] “Most kids are taught to do well in school so you can go to college and … get your degree and get a decent job and have a good middle class life, and we’ve really undercut that commitment with these fee hikes over the last 10 years,” said Vigna. “And at a certain point we just have to say stop, enough is enough. And go back to the way things were, which worked very well for California. We need to make the decision, as a state, that we are going to move forward and [the] Middle Class Scholarship is definitely a part of that.”[/quote] [I]Sources: [URL]http://www.theaggie.org/2012/08/20/middle-class-scholarship-passes-in-state-assembly/[/URL][/I] [I][URL]http://www.kpbs.org/news/2012/aug/13/bill-fund-middle-class-scholarships-passes-califor/[/URL][/I] If you're like me, a California middle class student going to university right now and/or in a couple of years and have worries about tuition fees being what they are, then this is extraordinary news!

I am lost for words right now on how important it is for these bills to pass

Gold star for Cali. The other 49 states need to get on the ball with this too. Excessive tuition rates and a lack of scholarships are why I never went to school, neither I nor my family could afford it out of pocket and I don't want to be paying for that degree for the next thirty years as I would if I just got a student loan. I want to go to school, I even know what school I want to attend and what classes I want to take(NADC, and literally everything on offer), but I can't go because I can't pay for it.

It's good that California recognizes that burdening an entire generation with student loans for 10-30 years might not be the best long-term plan for the economy Now if only all the other states would follow suit

Now give the public school system some damn funding already, my art teacher literally made us re-use the same paint because we're that poor.

I was pretty worried that after I graduate high school, I'd never be able to get past community college for monetary reasons.

at least california is sane still.

Just another reason I plan on moving there.

[QUOTE=Fahrenheit;37365288]Just another reason I plan on moving there.[/QUOTE] Dont know if this would warrant a move into the state but its definitely something to think about

California seems like a really nice place to live. I might consider moving there when I get my own place.

[QUOTE=TestECull;37362650]Gold star for Cali. The other 49 states need to get on the ball with this too. Excessive tuition rates and a lack of scholarships are why I never went to school, neither I nor my family could afford it out of pocket and I don't want to be paying for that degree for the next thirty years as I would if I just got a student loan. I want to go to school, I even know what school I want to attend and what classes I want to take(NADC, and literally everything on offer), but I can't go because I can't pay for it.[/QUOTE] Then get involved. Do good in school, write essays for scholarships and grants. Loans aren't the only option. I even took the initiative to become a Resident's Assistant which makes my housing and food free. Once I graduate in two years, I will only have about 25,000 in debt, with over 20 amazing references and things to add to my resume. This isn't just directed at you, but I keep hearing college is so expensive and I can't afford it. Not really an excuse in my book.

[QUOTE=QuikKill;37367345]Then get involved. Do good in school, write essays for scholarships and grants. Loans aren't the only option. I even took the initiative to become a Resident's Assistant which makes my housing and food free. Once I graduate in two years, I will only have about 25,000 in debt, with over 20 amazing references and things to add to my resume. This isn't just directed at you, but I keep hearing college is so expensive and I can't afford it. Not really an excuse in my book.[/QUOTE] Yes, I've been trying to get a job, but even as RA i'm turned down because I don't have experience. I was never able to get a job over the fact I didn't have resume experience and most companies don't give a fuck about any of that shit you just listed.

[QUOTE=QuikKill;37367345]Then get involved. Do good in school, write essays for scholarships and grants. Loans aren't the only option. I even took the initiative to become a Resident's Assistant which makes my housing and food free. Once I graduate in two years, I will only have about 25,000 in debt, with over 20 amazing references and things to add to my resume. This isn't just directed at you, but I keep hearing college is so expensive and I can't afford it. Not really an excuse in my book.[/QUOTE] Uhhh....getting involved does not change the fact that the courses I want to take at NADC cost ~$35,000, yet my family can barely afford a tenth that and I can't afford a damn thing. I looked into every fucking grant in the book. Either they had insane requirements(AP english to learn how to build V8s properly? What the fuck? Knowing shakespeare doesn't help me squeeze another 35 horsepower out of an LS7...), they required me to be a minority, they required me to be in an even poorer family, or they flat out aren't accepted at NADC. The only way I'm going to school is if I get student loans, and even then I can't pay those off because every place I've applied to between summer 2007 and today doesn't even have the balls to tell me they don't need me, so I can't find work either. It's fucking frustrating. I want to go to school, the school I want is right down the road and teaches exactly what I want to learn without making me pay for bullshit classes I'll never use, but nobody that can pay my way through is willing to do so and I can't pay my own way through. A bill like this would lower the bill to the point my folks could afford to put me through the schooling I want, and a few shiny new ASE certifications will have me working a job I enjoy in fairly short order.

[QUOTE=TestECull;37367421]Uhhh....getting involved does not change the fact that the courses I want to take at NADC cost ~$35,000, yet my family can barely afford a tenth that and I can't afford a damn thing. I looked into every fucking grant in the book. Either they had insane requirements(AP english to learn how to build V8s properly? What the fuck?), they required me to be a minority, they required me to be in an even poorer family, or they flat out aren't accepted at NADC. The only way I'm going to school is if I get student loans, and even then I can't pay those off because every place I've applied to between summer 2007 and today doesn't even have the balls to tell me they don't need me, so I can't find work either. It's fucking frustrating. I want to go to school, the school I want is right down the road and teaches exactly what I want to learn without making me pay for bullshit classes I'll never use, but nobody that can pay my way through is willing to do so and I can't pay my own way through. A bill like this would lower the bill to the point my folks could afford to put me through the schooling I want, and a few shiny new ASE certifications will have me working a job I enjoy in fairly short order.[/QUOTE] Clearly you're just not pulling your bootstraps hard enough. :rolleyes:

[QUOTE=Mingebox;37367479]Clearly you're just not pulling your bootstraps hard enough.[/QUOTE] Clearly some people don't know what it's like to be denied for every scholarship their school accepts, and what it's like to be born into a family that can't pay for them, AND what it's like to be unable to get a job through no fault of their own. I've been trying to get both a job and into NADC since junior year of high school way back in '07. Neither has gotten anywhere. Nobody is willing to hire someone without any experience because the economy is terrible, and NADC isn't going to let me take every course they offer out of the kindness of their hearts. It doesn't matter how hard I pull on my bootstraps. I could write an entire forest's worth of fucking essays and I won't get anywhere because I don't meet the basic requirements for every scholarship I can find that would otherwise get me into the school I want into. Or any school for that matter. I'm in that place where education beyond high school just isn't an option through no fault of their own. There's nothing more I can do, I've already done literally everything I can. Nobody will take a chance and give me a job so I can't pay for school out of pocket, my parents are too poor to do so but too rich for me to qualify for economically disadvantaged grants/scholarships, I'm about as athletic as a boulder so that's out, and I'm too white to get in on a minority scholarship. I need either an improving economy that lets me get a job or a fucking miracle, and neither is coming anytime soon. It fucking sucks.

[QUOTE=QuikKill;37367345]Then get involved. Do good in school, write essays for scholarships and grants. Loans aren't the only option. I even took the initiative to become a Resident's Assistant which makes my housing and food free. Once I graduate in two years, I will only have about 25,000 in debt, with over 20 amazing references and things to add to my resume. This isn't just directed at you, but I keep hearing college is so expensive and I can't afford it. Not really an excuse in my book.[/QUOTE] But that's the point. Whether or not you can attain education at the same level as your peers should not depend on whether some institution or wealthy foundation deems you worthy of it. To say that it should be expected of someone to apply for scholarships, or else it's just 'too bad' that they can't afford tuition fees, is preposterous to say the least.

[QUOTE=TestECull;37367539]Clearly some people don't know what it's like to be denied for every scholarship their school accepts, and what it's like to be born into a family that can't pay for them, AND what it's like to be unable to get a job through no fault of their own. I've been trying to get both a job and into NADC since junior year of high school way back in '07. Neither has gotten anywhere. Nobody is willing to hire someone without any experience because the economy is terrible, and NADC isn't going to let me take every course they offer out of the kindness of their hearts. It doesn't matter how hard I pull on my bootstraps. I could write an entire forest's worth of fucking essays and I won't get anywhere because I don't meet the basic requirements for every scholarship I can find that would otherwise get me into the school I want into. Or any school for that matter. I'm in that place where education beyond high school just isn't an option through no fault of their own. There's nothing more I can do, I've already done literally everything I can. Nobody will take a chance and give me a job so I can't pay for school out of pocket, my parents are too poor to do so but too rich for me to qualify for economically disadvantaged grants/scholarships, I'm about as athletic as a boulder so that's out, and I'm too white to get in on a minority scholarship. I need either an improving economy that lets me get a job or a fucking miracle, and neither is coming anytime soon. It fucking sucks.[/QUOTE] That was a joke.

Might help with this frustrating issue: [IMG]http://i49.tinypic.com/345fn1g.png[/IMG]

College is pretty fucked here in California. Attending community because I can't afford Uni right now. Sad thing is the tuition is the same. It costs me hundreds and into the thousands for courses, books, food and transportation. That and the below-average teaching quality. Why must I be subject to this, and for what, a job? So I can earn enough money to be a good consumer? Goodness forbid we have good careers now. Still, you can't be too depressed TestECull, every little thing is gonna be alright

[QUOTE=sHiBaN;37367899]College is pretty fucked here in California. Attending community because I can't afford Uni right now. Sad thing is the tuition is the same. It costs me hundreds and into the thousands for courses, books, food and transportation. That and the below-average teaching quality. Why must I be subject to this, and for what, a job? So I can earn enough money to be a good consumer? Goodness forbid we have good careers now. Still, you can't be too depressed TestECull, every little thing is gonna be alright[/QUOTE] If you can get a BOG fee waiver for community/junior college, it helps immensely. Not including textbook costs, I paid $8.31 for my classes this semester, and that was just the fee paid to get free bus rides. These are of course UC-transferable classes, mind you.

I'm lucky enough that I will probably have very few student loans when I leave college (My parents are being ultra generous, and I have a shitton of cash packed away from when I used to act) I really feel terrible about how my friends may not be able to afford a good university, and the community colleges are all packed full. Hopefully this will help them and people like them.

[QUOTE=ChristopherB;37367701]Might help with this frustrating issue: [IMG]http://i49.tinypic.com/345fn1g.png[/IMG][/QUOTE] That arrow points squarely at my household, sadly.

Kentucky needs to jump the fuck on this. My family draws in ~$70,000 a year, and I only qualify for federal loans. So outside of my scholarship, my college degree is costing me a fuck ton. But then again, my university is right $38,615 for tuition and the worst of the dorms. $41,720 is the total cost of attendance, which is what it's costing me as a sophomore. I'd love to see Kentucky adopt this kind of policy. I'm grateful for what I get outside of loans, but it's really not enough.

SEND TO CHICAGO NOW PLEASE ;~;

As a European, I find it mind boggling daft that something as vital as education and health services aren't paid over taxes. Even more so that the issue is in a country like USA, and not some 3rd world country. Also those gaping huge tax loopholes that the rich can exploit.

[QUOTE=Van-man;37368772]As a European, I find it mind boggling daft that something as vital as education and health services aren't paid over taxes. Even more so that the issue is in a country like USA, and not some 3rd world country. Also those gaping huge tax loopholes that the rich can exploit.[/QUOTE] Even though most European countries don't pay for students' way through university, least of all the UK? France does, and Germany and Scandinavia have good programs, but fully-state-subsidized university is hardly the standard throughout Europe. And you think Europe doesn't have tax issues? Just look at Greece or Italy.

[QUOTE=Megafan;37367958]If you can get a BOG fee waiver for community/junior college, it helps immensely. Not including textbook costs, I paid $8.31 for my classes this semester, and that was just the fee paid to get free bus rides. These are of course UC-transferable classes, mind you.[/QUOTE] I have applied for BOG waiver and I am taking transfer courses. Like I said, its costing me into the thousands because I am in the middle class and do not qualify for the BOG. That's if I even get into some of the classes. My college is packed and when the courses go online, the server actually gets DDOS'ed from everyone trying to buy at the same time

Helping out the middle class is just a political talking point, you're not supposed to actually do it.

[QUOTE=Megafan;37367958]If you can get a BOG fee waiver for community/junior college, it helps immensely. Not including textbook costs, I paid $8.31 for my classes this semester, and that was just the fee paid to get free bus rides. These are of course UC-transferable classes, mind you.[/QUOTE] How are you getting that if you're middle class? I genuinely want to know; limitations on assistance are confusing as hell.

[QUOTE=Ybbats;37369276]Helping out the middle class is just a political talking point, you're not supposed to actually do it.[/QUOTE] [I] "Oh, let's wait until they're officially lower class before even [B]TRYING[/B] to give a shit"[/I]