Armed with hundreds of UW-Madison student signatures petitioning for lower college loan interest rates and increased Pell Grants, this weekend approximately 20 UW-Madison students will drive 16 hours to lobby in Washington D.C., for the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.
The HEA ensures the federal government will set aside minimally $10 billion annually for Pell Grants and provides for other forms of tuition aid. UW-Madison representatives from the Associated Students of Madison, Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group and the Multicultural Student Coalition hope to defend the act's provisions to Congress Tuesday.
\It is critical that students come together to work on these issues affecting students at the federal level,"" WisPIRG Intern Kat Molter said in a press release. ""Students are always targeted for cuts at the federal level and it is time that we stand up and ensure that the Higher Education Act is good for students.""
This week, ASM representatives have been gathering signatures on Library Mall as proof that many UW-Madison students support raising Pell Grants from $4,500 to $5,000, ASM Legislative Affairs Chair Erin Johnson said. Johnson said representatives will continue collecting signatures through Thursday and added she expected 800 signatures by Wednesday evening and hopes to have a few thousand by this weekend.
ASM Campus Relations Chair Brian Jenks said state representatives from Madison have been extremely responsive to increasing needs of Pell Grant recipients. Johnson added ASM's Legislative Affairs Committee will continue working for tuition relief after next week's lobbying.
""We would like to work with possibly other schools in Wisconsin so that they get their Representatives [to take action] too,"" Johnson said.
