Student aid deal approved, though questions linger

SPRINGFIELD - Halfway through midterms at Aurora University, Rich Fisher's rising stress level has been compounded by growing uncertainty about his academic future.

Budget cuts to a key state financial aid program mean Fisher, 20, of Lake Villa, and thousands of other college students would get no assistance in the spring semester.

"The one thing I didn't want to worry about is whether I'll be able to come back to school next semester," Fisher said Thursday while attending a rally at the Capitol that attracted droves of college students from across the state.

Many told similar stories. Without assistance from programs like the Monetary Award Program their higher education options become limited.

"The only reason I'm able to afford DePaul is the MAP grant and other financial aid," said DePaul University freshman Juan Salgado, 18, of Park Ridge.

"Without it, it's going to be a big struggle," added Anthony Alfano, a 19-year-old DePaul student from Lake in the Hills.

Alicia Doty, a 20-year-old Aurora University student from Dixon, said her choices would be: "drop out or take out more loans."

The $400 million financial aid program was one of many victims of the state's soured economy and growing budget woes. In the end, the program only got half the funding and that money was all put into the first semester, leaving nothing for the upcoming second semester.

On Thursday, the Illinois House and Senate approved a deal that tells Gov. Pat Quinn to come up with $204 million for the second semester funding. Quinn said he supports the move.

But lawmakers say it shouldn't have come to this and some question if fixing one funding problem won't simply create another.

Unable to agree on a balanced budget earlier this year, the controlling Democrats sent Quinn an unbalanced plan and told him to manage. Part of that deal included more than $1 billion in discretionary spending for Quinn to prioritize as he saw fit.

Quinn signed that deal. But the billion-plus dollars he controlled went to health care and other programs, not the Monetary Award Program. Lawmakers said if Quinn thought that program is as crucial as he now contends, then he should have used his budgeting to fully fund it rather than run around the state blaming lawmakers.

"He chose to fund other things," said state Sen. Michael Frerichs, a Champaign Democrat who sponsored the latest deal in the state Senate.

This deal does not come up with any new funding for the student assistance program. It merely spells out in law that the governor should fund it. Quinn said he'll do so by taking money from elsewhere in the budget, but acknowledges just about everything is running short and more money is needed to keep all these programs running.

"You have surpluses in certain funds ... you borrow from those. You repay everything. That's a fiscal technique in a crisis. We're in a crisis," Quinn told the Daily Herald during a quick trek outside his Capitol office Thursday.

However, some lawmakers feared the next Capitol rally would be staged by whatever group gets shorted so the financial aid can be funded.

Quinn has proposed raising the state income tax to help balance the budget but continued debate on that issue isn't expected until next year.

Republicans sought to approve an amnesty deal that would encourage state tax cheats to pay up and avoid severe penalties. They said such a plan could provide more than $100 million for the financial aid program. It, however, was not considered Thursday.