The Associated Students of Madison created an information-gathering campaign at a Student Council meeting Wednesday, focusing on financial aid for UW-Madison students on campus, specifically with regard for work-study employment programs.
Carl Fergus, UW-Madison senior, said the work-study campaign intends to make up for a growing tendency of the U.S. government to withhold money entitled to students qualified to receive financial aid through work-study programs and guaranteed by FAFSA.
Fergus, who will lead the campaign, said he hopes it will eventually increase the base rate of pay provided by the university in work-study jobs to help compensate for the government's absence.
""It's great for the U.S. government to say we give this much money in aid to the student, but the sad thing is, students don't really get the aid … my personal amount is $1,200 for this year from the government that I'm not getting,"" he said.
Fergus said he recognizes the fact that while the campaign has high aspirations, it will not be able to provide immediate results.
He said for the spring semester the newly enacted financial aid campaign will aim to investigate some fundamental points concerning students who are eligible for work-study programs on campus.
""We want to figure out how many students are actually in the work-study program, how much money they're receiving and the effect it has on the university budget,"" he said.
ASM members unanimously voted to pass the financial aid campaign, possibly indicating a general sentiment that work-study programs on campus need to be re-evaluated.
The Student Council also reviewed the Student Judiciary budget and will continue other budget hearings at the Feb. 24 meeting.
