“There are now 980 college students at Northern Marianas College and off-island, collecting a total $3.7 million to help them get their degrees,” Sablan reports.
“That is 186 more students getting help with their tuition than before we passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act in March. And about $700 more on average for each student.
“I am very pleased to see such an immediate impact right here in the Northern Marianas as a result of the changes in national education policy that I helped push through Congress.”
The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, or SAFRA, first passed the House of Representatives in 2009, and then was signed into law as part of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.
The law increases eligibility for the Pell grants and also increases the maximum dollar amount of the grants. This year’s maximum is $5,550, but the grant increases each year to keep up with rising costs for higher education. The following chart shows the changes in Pell grants from 2002 to 2017.
Pell grants were also increased in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, one of the first bills that Sablan voted to support as a new member of Congress in 2009.
He then joined Chairman George Miller and other members of the Education and Labor Committee in sponsoring SAFRA, which included even more Pell grant aid, as well as significant changes in the federal tuition loan programs.
“By cutting out the middle man in the loan process we were able to save the federal government $86 billion.
“$36 billion of those savings were then passed on to Pell grant students, broadening eligibility and increasing grant awards.
“Cutting out the middle man also results in lower interest rates for tuition loans,” Sablan said.
As of July 1, the interest rates on subsidized federal student loans decreases from 5.6 percent to 4.5 percent.
Repayment terms are also improved. Federal student loan borrowers can have their loan payments reduced, based on income and family size. For most eligible borrowers, loan payments will be less than 10 percent of their income.
In addition, SAFRA provides funding for College Access Challenge Grants. Northern Marianas College is eligible to receive $7.5 million over the next five years from the program, which is designed to help students facing barriers to entering college and completing their degrees.
