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May 30, 2006 Volume 30, Issue 34 |
Promise Awards to provide student support
President Robert H. “Doc” Foglesong has announced a new university initiative to provide support for incoming freshmen whose family incomes can’t accommodate rising tuition.
Mississippi State Promise Awards are being established for students meeting required academic qualifications and whose family incomes fall below $30,000. The program also provides campus work opportunities to help offset other non-tuition costs.
“Mississippi State Promise will provide financial awards for those students who can’t meet the expense of rising tuition,” Foglesong explained. The program will cover the cost of tuition and required fees.
Foglesong said ensuring access to a Mississippi State education is an important personal goal. “We are trying to provide in a modest way the resources to help young men and women who have been squeezed out by tuition,” he added.
Qualifying students must have achieved at least a 3.0 (out of 4.0) grade-point average in high school. They also must maintain at least a 2.5 MSU grade-point average to remain eligible. Full-time students may receive the Promise Award for a maximum of five years.
To fund the awards, MSU will draw on institutional grant funding, in conjunction with federal and state grants and private gifts, said Dr. Bill Kibler, vice president for student affairs.
“We’ll also make use of other institutional scholarships and waivers to ensure that the entire cost of tuition and required fees is covered with student gift aid,” he said.
“We’re doing this because it’s the right thing to do,” Foglesong said. “I’m confident we’ll be able to take a bite out of the burden on some families.”