Students closer to being able to work through college
Unanimous passage of Shared Responsibility Model by Senate will send bill to Oregon House
Lauren Dillard
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
The unanimous passage of Senate Bill 334 in the Oregon Senate Wednesday marked the first of many steps the Legislature could take in proving to students that higher education matters.
"This is a huge victory for students," said Oregon Student Association Chair Megan Driver, who is also an OSU student. She is one of many students who advocated for student rights this legislative session.
The bill puts in place the Shared Responsibility Model, making it more possible for students to work their way through college. Currently, at University of Oregon, a student must work 49 hours per week at minimum wage all year-round to afford to go to school, according to OSA Communications Director Courtney Sproule.
"I am sure OSU is something like that," she said.
The Shared Responsibility Model assures that if students and their families fulfill the requirements set on them by the state to fund a child's education, then the state of Oregon will fill in where the federal government left off.
Students will be able to do something that only their grandparents would have been able to do - work their way through college.
"Students just can't do that now," Sproule said.
Currently, the state of Oregon has only one comparable program and even they are not in the same ball park.
The Oregon Opportunity Grant is a first-come, first-serve need-based program. The grant arbitrarily gives 11 percent funding to those who qualify based on need. Students with the greatest need don't see more funding, they see funding at the standard rate of 11 percent.
"The Shared Responsibility Model is based on what students can actually afford to pay," Sproule said.
"I think this model is much more comprehensive and better serves the student population across the Oregon University System," said ASOSU President Mike Olson.
Like any program, the Shared Responsibility Model has certain flaws.
"The biggest flaw is that it only takes into account four years (of school) and the average student doesn't graduate in the four-year timeline," Olson said. "It has a limit to how much assistance it can provide students. We would all love to see increased assistance to students because college is expensive for students and their families."
"This is a huge victory for students," said Oregon Student Association Chair Megan Driver, who is also an OSU student. She is one of many students who advocated for student rights this legislative session.
The bill puts in place the Shared Responsibility Model, making it more possible for students to work their way through college. Currently, at University of Oregon, a student must work 49 hours per week at minimum wage all year-round to afford to go to school, according to OSA Communications Director Courtney Sproule.
"I am sure OSU is something like that," she said.
The Shared Responsibility Model assures that if students and their families fulfill the requirements set on them by the state to fund a child's education, then the state of Oregon will fill in where the federal government left off.
Students will be able to do something that only their grandparents would have been able to do - work their way through college.
"Students just can't do that now," Sproule said.
Currently, the state of Oregon has only one comparable program and even they are not in the same ball park.
The Oregon Opportunity Grant is a first-come, first-serve need-based program. The grant arbitrarily gives 11 percent funding to those who qualify based on need. Students with the greatest need don't see more funding, they see funding at the standard rate of 11 percent.
"The Shared Responsibility Model is based on what students can actually afford to pay," Sproule said.
"I think this model is much more comprehensive and better serves the student population across the Oregon University System," said ASOSU President Mike Olson.
Like any program, the Shared Responsibility Model has certain flaws.
"The biggest flaw is that it only takes into account four years (of school) and the average student doesn't graduate in the four-year timeline," Olson said. "It has a limit to how much assistance it can provide students. We would all love to see increased assistance to students because college is expensive for students and their families."
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Dann Cutter
posted 4/12/07 @ 8:01 AM PST
The fundemental flaw with this is that Oregon State University does not set class schedules with working students in mind. As such, 4 years is nearly impossible, as is a coherent program in most cases. (Continued…)
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