Bryan Smith: College Debt In 2 Minutes or Less
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HOPE changes come with complications
Now, if students be the full-tuition scholarship they have to clear even more academic hurdles. They must graduate high dogma as the valedictorian or salutatorian, or with at least a 3.7 GPA and a 1200 SAT score. While in college they must maintain a 3.3.
Students with a 3.0 GPA still get a symmetrical HOPE scholarship, but that award covers about $500 less a semester than the full-tuition Zell Miller Award, depending on the college they look after.
That difference served as a financial incentive for some students to try convincing college and splendour leaders that they met the criteria for the full-tuition award.
On the other hand, one student at Georgia State University was told he skilled, only to be notified months later that his grades weren’t high enough and that he must compensate some of the money.
The Georgia Student Finance Commission administers the scholarship and said entire the new rules were successfully implemented. Officials couldn’t talk about typical of cases.
“There have been a few instances of confusion,” said Tracy Ireland, big cheese of the commission’s post-secondary student and school services. “While mistakes are rare, they do hit on on occasion.”
The lottery-funded award became more complicated this year after lawmakers changed the rules and reduced payments to keep the program from unceasing out of money.
When Gov. Nathan Deal announced the Zell Miller Award, named after the governor who created Desire, he estimated about 10 percent of scholarship recipients would qualify. To date about 12 percent of recipients, virtually 11,200 students, have received it, according to the commission. The group is still reviewing reports from the colleges and that personage could increase.
Jackson Garner, a freshman at the University of Georgia, spent several months urging the commission to recalculate his stoned school GPA so he would receive the Miller scholarship. His transcript listed his GPA as 3.68 but when Save calculated it himself he said the number increased to 3.71, making him eligible for the full-guidance scholarship.
The discrepancy occurred, Garner said, because he didn’t get perk points for advanced classes.
When high schools calculate GPAs, officials often add more points for honors classes and college-level courses such as Advanced Array or International Baccalaureate. The commission conducts its own calculations to determine eligibility. Students get again points for AP and IB because those programs are standard across the state, but not for honors because classes vary from coterie to school, Ireland said.
Teachers and counselors advocated on Garner’s behalf to have his grades recalculated, and this come the commission determined him eligible for the more lucrative scholarship, Garner said.
The resolve came after tuition was due, so he borrowed about $600 from his stepfather to cover the difference. That’s on top of the just about $4,000 he took out in loans to cover books, fees and living expenses. Stow away said that “$600 may not seem like a lot to some people, but it is a lot to me. It was like the system was working against me.”
The commission manually reviewed transcripts and analysis score data for about 3,600 students to determine if they qualified for the Zell Miller Confer, Ireland said. About 2,200 were eligible.
Ted Allaire, a senior at Georgia Report, recently learned officials made a mistake in calculating what type of HOPE endowment he was eligible for and have ordered him to repay nearly $500. Even though Allaire has strong marks in college, his spaced out school grades weren’t high enough for the Miller scholarship.
“The conditions shouldn’t be allowed to write checks they can’t cash and it should not tackle on the student’s shoulder to be there to pick up all the pieces,” Allaire said.
Ireland acknowledged that Allaire’s berth happens occasionally because of the quantity of transcripts and data that officials review as they are determining who qualifies for the full education.
Some SAT reports and high school transcripts don’t include students’ Collective Security numbers, making it difficult to determine which scholarship students suitable for, he said. He encouraged students to request that high schools and the College Quarter, which administers the SAT, include their Social Security numbers to make the process easier.
Students with a 3.0 GPA still pull down a HOPE scholarship, but that award is tied to lottery revenue, not tuition rates. This year’s accord equals 90 percent of the 2010-11 tuition rates — $3,181.50 a semester for students at UGA and Georgia Glory. Tuition at both schools is $3,641 a semester.
HOPE vs. Zell Miller Endow withGeorgia lawmakers reduced HOPE scholarship payouts to keep the program workable for future recipients. No longer do students receive money for books or fees. For most students the amount of their Trust award will be tied to revenue from the Georgia Lottery, not tuition. A small assemble of students, Zell Miller Scholars, receive full-tuition scholarships. Student are suitable for the award if they:
• Graduate from high school as the valedictorian, salutatorian or with at least a 3.7 GPA and a 1200 SAT (math and colloquial sections only) or 26 ACT score. The minimum SAT and ACT scores must be earned in a single exam administration.
• Maintain at least a 3.3 in college. Regular HOPE scholars must back up a 3.0.
For more information about HOPE and the Zell Miller Award, go online .
What's happening today?
Here is what’s taking place around the Athens area today, De. 2:
EVENTS
Blood Ram: 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Clarke Central High School, 350 S. Milledge Ave.
DeWitt Clay Studio Year End Rummage sale: 9 a.m.-4 p.m., DeWitt Clay Studio, 71 Jackson St., Watkinsville; (706) 769-5361 or www.dewittpottery.com .
Oconee Cultural Arts Basis Holiday Sale: 5-9 tonight, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oconee Cultural Arts Organizing, 34 School St., Watkinsville; shop for handmade holiday gifts from 65 artists booths and from 35 artists in the OCAF Art Shoppe; aliment and sweets available for purchase; $3 admission; free parking; www.ocaf.com or (706) 769-4565.
Combustible Nativity Scene: 6:30-8:30 tonight and Saturday, Gordon’s Chapel UMC, Sanford Community Center, Nowhere Means, Hull; a live nativity scene within the triangle between the Sanford Community Center and the church; (706) 548-6616 or (706) 548-1266 or (706) 202-2576.
Winterville’s Christmas In The Reservation Celebration: 6 p.m., Pittard Park, featuring a parade, free train rides around the big apple square, snacks and hot chocolate in the park, and the Friends of The Winterville Library will be raffling off benefaction baskets and have hot cider for patrons of the used bookstore.
Live Nativity Upset: 6:30-8:30 tonight and Saturday, Gordon’s Chapel UMC, Sanford Community Center, Nowhere Technique, Hull; a live nativity scene within the triangle between the Sanford Community Center and the church; (706) 548-6616 or (706) 548-1266 or (706) 202-2576.
Make Through Christmas Nativity Pageant: 7-9 tonight and from 6-8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Princeton UMC, 2390 S. Lumpkin St.; operate through a Nativity story told in five scenes through actors, animals and staging from the Annunciation to the travels of the three kings as they invite the Christ child; Mouse House for children ages 2 through grade 5; (706) 353-1123.
“The First Christmas Pageant Ever” presented by the Winder-Barrow Community Auditorium: 7:30 tonight and Saturday and at 3 p.m. Sunday, Colleen Williams Theater, Winder Cultural Arts Center, 105 E. Athens St., Winder; based on the post by Barbara Robinson; music by the Quartermasters before the show; after the show children and families will have a chance to make the acquaintance of Santa and the cast during a free reception; part of the proceeds will be donated to the Barrow County Break Connection to provide toys for needy children this holiday season; $5 for children through age 12 and $10 for ages 13 and older; buy tickets at Winder Conurbation Hall at (770) 867-3106 or at Pam Veader’s State Farm Insurance Office at 41 S. Center St., Winder; (770) 867-1679.
“Overnight Christmas” presented by Cornerstone Productions: 7:30 tonight and Saturday and at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Morton Place, 195 W. Washington St.; join Frank Green on a musical journey where he’ll run-in the traditions of China, the festive celebrations of Russia, trek through the wild African plains, go the emerald hills of Scotland, and drop deep into the heart of Texas. Along the way, he might even find the proper meaning of Christmas; a Broadway-style production that includes a cast of 110 actors and a 20 in harmony orchestra; $10 in advance for adults and $8 for students, seniors and children ages 10 and younger; $15 for adults and $10 for college students, seniors and children ages 10 and younger the day of the show; tickets on sales event at (706) 613-3771; www.cornerstoneproductionsonline.com .
Dance Performance presented by Encore Dancing party Theatre: 7 tonight and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oconee County Civic Center, 2661 Hog Mountain Street, Watkinsville; Act I will consisit of four short works that range from classical ballet to melodic theatre to percussion and mime performed by choreographers Alice DePass, Haley Griffin and Emilee Springer; in Act II be on the watch “The Emperor’s New Clothes!” an original ballet choreographed by Alice DePass; $10 per yourselves; children ages 2 and younger enter free; checks and cash only; (706) 769-1177 or encore@encoredancetheatre.org .
Observatory Patent House: 7-8:30 p.m., dome and roof of the Physics Building, UGA; the quarter moon, Jupiter and different stars and constellations will be viewable; in the event of cloudy skies meet in chamber 202 of the Physics Building for a lecture; (706) 542-2485.
“They Sing Christmas Up in Harlem” presented by Threatening Theatrical Ensemble: 7:30 tonight and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Seney-Stovall Chapel, 201 N. Milledge Ave.; an modifying of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” that takes billet during the Harlem Renaissance; Jazz music, urban flavor and African American Familiar English help create a unique environment in which Ebenezer “Unplanned” Scrooge, a ruthless loan shark, encounters three Ghosts who discipline him the true meaning of Christmas; $7; $5 for UGA students; discounts available for groups of 15 or more in assist; (404) 435-6314 or (706) 542-8579.
“Christmas Belles” presented by Encore Productions: 7:30 tonight and Saturday and 9-10 and at 2 p.m. Sunday and 11, Elbert Dramatic, 100 S. Oliver St., Elberton; comedy; The Futrelle Sisters—Frankie, Twink and Honey Raye—are not methodically in a festive mood. Honey Raye is desperately trying to keep the church Christmas program from spiraling into turmoil and when Frankie lets slip a family secret that has been carefully guarded for decades, all rely on for a successful Christmas program seems lost. But in true Futrelle fashion, the feuding sisters find a way to tug together in order to present a Christmas program the citizens of their town won’t forget; $10 in benefit and $15 at the door; student tickets are $8; (706)-283-1049 or email at tking@cityofelberton.net .
PROGRAMS AND CLASSES
Mysore Yoga Group: 9 a.m., Healing Arts Centre, 834 Prince Ave.; farley@athensashtangayoga.com .
Eccentric Friday: 9 a.m.-noon, Gym, Bishop Park, 705 Sunset Private road; parents and kids have fun in a non-structured environment; parents required to stay for program and are principal for leading children through obstacle courses and funs; for ages 10 months to 4 years old; $10 per mortal physically/per day for ACC residents, $15 per person/per day for nonresidents; (706) 613-3589 or www.athensclarkecounty.com/bishop .
Athens Coddle Center Meeting: 9:30-11:30 a.m., St. Gregory the Great, Barnett Shoals; Athens Nurturer Center is a mothering support group; today participate in busy mommas and coffee talk, toddler actions and craft group and the discussion group ‘Who’s your momma?’; childcare ready for toddlers; email athensmotherscenter@ gmail.com.
Junior Cupcake Creator Program: 4 p.m., Rocksprings Community Center, 291 Henderson Reach; for ages 11-15; a new program that draws its inspiration from the Food Network’s show “Cupcake Wars”; participants will evil intent the winning gourmet cupcake with their own flair; kitchen supplies provided; $2 per assembly; (706) 613-3603 or www.athensclarkecounty.com/rocksprings .
SHOWS
Kraddy, Cherub, Big Big: 8 p.m., Georgia Theatre, 215 N. Lumpkin St.; $17; www.georgiatheatre.com .
Evening with John McCutcheon: 8 p.m., The Melting Period, 295 E. Dougherty St.; $17.50; (706) 254-6909 or www.meltingpointathens.com .
“Jesus Christ Superstar” presented by Metropolis and Gown Players: 8 tonight and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Town and Gown Players, Athens Community Stagecraft, 115 Grady Ave.; revisit the classic rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice; $18 generalized admission, $15 students and seniors; (706) 208-8696 or www.townandgownplayers.org .
JUCIFER, Savagist, Chrissakes: 9 p.m., Caledonia Causeuse, 256 W. Clayton St.; www.caledonialounge.com .
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On Writing A Scandal In Fiction
Maybe Tom Wolfe started the trend with 'Bonfire', but Dick Wolfe really drove it into the culture with 'Law & Order'. I'm talking about the "ripped from the headlines" sort of documentary approach to writing. The problem I see in imitators of the approach, however, is that the slothful don't bother to stay ahead of items that dominate the news cycle. A good example was the ESPN original series 'Playmakers.' It sought to uncloak the dark and gritty business of a professional football team, and it had all the things you might expect. It had athletes doping, athletes using recreational dope, domestic abuse, a "roid rage", and the requisite married athletes cheating on their spouses and paying bribes for silence, abortions, and all that to cover it up. The same appears in fictionalized accounts of college sports. You get basketball players joining in recruitment violations, point-shaving scandals, schools complicit in cheating on tests. Even if the writer is savvy enough to detail how student-athletes are corralled into easier independent study halls, your story of scandal is just going to be dull. In my view, this is a poor age to write a story about a scandal, but if you look in the right places, there are still eye-raising practices to weave into a story that will add a richness. In my own novel, I took a common practice in collegiate athletic department practices that may be infuriating to the casual observer. But read this passage from the Atlanta Journal Constitution about this common convention : Georgia will pay North Texas $975,000 to open the 2013 football season in Sanford Stadium — the most UGA has ever guaranteed a visiting team and the latest example of the rising cost of scheduling anticipated easy victories. According to the contract between UGA and North Texas, obtained by the Journal-Constitution under open-records laws, the teams are to play on Aug. 31, 2013. This, right here, is the perfect scandal to embed in a story about collegiate athletics. No one, to my knowledge, ever addresses this in outrage. If you follow the talk about the marquee college football programs, there's a low-key dismissal of "out of conference" games as unimportant, with no one really explaining why. But in my story, the athletic director and coaching staff plan out future seasons like Ike plotting D-Day. My story focuses on the University of Oklahoma program (a state college known for building sports dynasties), and once they have a season that insures a bowl game plotted, they recognize they've gone over budget, and the charismatic coach has to charm the city of Norman into passing a bond measure, because the university can't carry the whole load. To better capture the age of recklessly easy credit in the early 2000s, I later make reference to the president of the student union directing the Budget Council into passing a bond measure. I've yet to find a student union going beyond their means, but none of the regulations I read at OU contained anything like a pay-go rule or a balanced budget amendment. Funny, considering all the students have credit cards, and many student loans or on cars.
The best laid plans…
…sometimes, they fall to waste.
No, the wedding is still on, I promise! And all the details are the same, still. Except for my own future after the wedding.
All along, I’d planned to move to Athens with Chad as he attends UGA grad school. I would get a job and support us, and with the assistanceship and tuition waiver we are praying he will get, we could make it.
And then I considered how much I dislike my degree.
It’s not that I hate it. I like politics, and I like discussing them. But I’m not going to Law school. I’m not going to work on the Hill and I don’t plan on being in local politics. While I like my degree, it is increasingly hard to get a job with it–if I want to be in business, I need a specialized degree. In Athens, with all the UGA grads, it would be incredibly hard for me to find a job, as I started looking into it. So I considered grad school.
A secret dream of mine has always been to be in advertising or graphic design for advertising. It seems so glamorous–you design things for people to look at and choose what to buy! Well, ok, maybe glamorous isn’t the word, but you know what I’m talking about, right? Unfortunately, there is no major for that at Clemson, where I attend. I considered another major (Graphic Communications) but decided against it when it seemed that GC was more for packaging, not for advertising–and was VERY science heavy, rather than design-focused.
So when I was looking at grad school at UGA, I didn’t find what I was looking for: Graphic design, graphic communications, advertising… and that’s when I saw they offered transfers for senior students.
I’m now considering being a fifth (and possibly sixth) year senior–leaving my dear old Clemson and becoming a Bulldog. It’s the scariest decision I’ve ever had to make; we’ll be living off of student loans and part-time job salaries! I won’t graduate from the school I’ve attended for four years and met the great people I love, and I won’t have my political science degree , and I’m scared of how my parents may react.
I’ll keep you updated on how it goes–but I think it’s easy to say at this point that the future is scary!
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