SCRANTON, PA (June 17, 2015)—Several Marywood student representatives took part in the 2015 AICUP (Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania) Student Lobby Day, in an effort to ask lawmakers to increase their support for higher education through the many notable financial aid programs available to students and their families.
Nearly two hundred independent college and university students, faculty, and administrators, from more than 30 institutions made their way through the state Capitol Building, meeting with legislators and staff as they convened for the AICUP 2015 Student Lobby Day.
As part of their state budget requests, the student lobbyists asked lawmakers to increase PHEAA (Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency) state grant funding by five percent, or $17.2 million dollars.
Additionally, student representatives’ asked lawmakers to support the governor’s proposed $10 million increase for the Ready to Succeed Scholarship (RTSS) program and $5 million increase for Institutional Assistance Grants. Representatives also requested a no-vote on the governor’s plan to expand the sales tax to textbooks, meal plans, and students fees—taxes which would all directly impact students’ wallets an additional $400 per year.
Pictured (left to right): Kielty Turner, DSW, assistant professor and director of the BSW program at Marywood University; Alexa Hirsch, New Ringgold, Pa.; Alexa Glenn, Hershey, Pa.; Lisa Wilson, Easton, Pa.; and State Senator John Blake.