Taking the needed steps to help West Virginia students

“A lot of kids are sitting on the sidelines wondering not when the money can come, but ‘am I going to be able to go to college?’” Justice said. “The way around this is for the governor to declare a State of Emergency for the state of West Virginia so we can bypass this FAFSA stuff and we can at least get on to getting our kids state funding.”

As West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission Chancellor Dr. Sarah Tucker explained, students who apply for and qualify for the PROMISE Scholarship by Sept. 1 will receive up to $5,500 for the 2024-25 academic year under the governor’s emergency declaration.

Also, the state will use last year’s FAFSA — if the student previously applied — to award needs-based money through the West Virginia Higher Education Grant. While that won’t help new college students, it does help those who are already enrolled and taking courses.

The emergency goes one step further in allowing those who qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Women, Infants and Children and the Childcare Subsidy Program to use that for needs-based funding. Under the West Virginia Higher Education Grant, students receive an additional $3,400.

Again, this isn’t a perfect solution, nor does it fix the federal program’s problems. The Biden Administration has failed miserably in this effort and the effects are obvious: Nationwide, FAFSA applications for freshman are down 36%, while in West Virginia they are down 40%, according to U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-West Virginia.

Capito was highly critical of the process during a Senate hearing with U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona.

“We’ve got to be more aggressive here,” Capito said. “I honestly get tired — I’m on the Appropriations Committee, and it’s all about money, but it seems like the only solution we ever we ever hear is, ‘We need more money for staff.’ Well, this could have been done a lot better.”

It is indefensible that the U.S. Department of Education has failed in this key mission. Perhaps more attention should be paid to the issues that truly matter instead of some of the societal issues that always seem to grab headlines these days.

In a state like West Virginia, which is already battling to improve workforce training and educational levels, eliminating obstacles for those wanting to advance must be paramount.

Gov. Justice has sent a clear signal that his administration will do the state’s part. Now we need the federal government to do its job.