“Most people can afford them and it is also more accessible,” he said, referring to online universities.
But he said the SHEFA board headed by Joe Mafnas must amend their rules and regulations first.
There are 28 to 35 recipients of SHEFA financial assistance taking online courses, Hofschneider said.
But the SHEFA board has yet to decide whether to treat online applications as on-island or off-island recipients, and the amount of award an eligible online applicant could get.
The SHEFA committee on awards, during its recent meeting, decided to discuss the issue with the full board.
The board, however, told the committee to further discuss whether to treat online students as on-island or off-island recipients.
“I agreed with the board that we should make financial assistance available to those who are eligible regardless if they are attending colleges or universities on campus or they are taking online courses,” Hofschneider said.
He said some people can’t afford to be full-time students because they have a day-time job.
