State of Illinois Cuts MAP Grants

Approximately one in four Illinois (primarily low income) college students will be left out in the cold come January 1, 2010, because the State of Illinois has cut funding for the Monetary Award Program (MAP) by nearly $200 million. Because of these cuts, students who have been awarded MAP grants this year will now only be getting half the amount they were eligible to receive. Without legislative action in the upcoming veto sessions in October, nearly 138,000 Illinois college students will lose MAP grants pledged to them last spring.

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) has established the web site: saveillinoismapgrants.org to update the public on this issue. They have also created an online: www.thepetitionsite.com/1/saveillinoismapgrant for people to express their opinion to lawmakers.

There is a short window of opportunity in October (during General Assembly’s veto sessions) for lawmakers to address the second semester funding of the MAP grant. People need to let their lawmakers know that it is not OK to balance the state budget by cutting funds to low income students.

MAP Grant Facts:
The mean taxable income of MAP recipients was just $23,558

77 percent of students receiving MAP grant assistance had a household income of less than $40,000 per year

130,000 eligible students did not receive ANY award because the program ran out of funding on May 15

Demand for the need-based Monetary Award Program (MAP) increased nearly 25 percent from last year

The General Assembly’s veto session, which takes place on October 14-16 and October 28-30, is the last opportunity to fund the MAP grant program for the second semester.

Submitted by:
Joseph Orsolini, CFP
®College Aid Planners, Inc
630-469-6776
www.notpayingforcollege.com