Charleston Gazette-Mail, Williamson Daily News - President Joe Biden’s planned student loan forgiveness might have an outsized financial benefit for former West Virginia college students. Read the full article. The plan would forgive $10,000 in current federal student loan debt for everyone making under $125,000 annually. Debt holders could be forgiven whether they actually earned…
Education
Daily Athenaeum - This year, students are paying more out of pocket than ever before with recent increases in tuition and fees at West Virginia University. In the future, they could expect to spend even more. Read the full article. In an exclusive interview with The Daily Athenaeum on Monday, WVU President E. Gordon Gee…
West Virginia MetroNews- The Hope Scholarship Board voted Tuesday to process more than 180 applications that came in after the new program’s May 16 deadline. Read the full article. West Virginia Deputy Treasurer for of Savings Programs Amy Willard told the board most parents who applied late said they had become recently aware of the…
West Virginia MetroNews - In the first year, 3,010 students have been awarded new Hope Scholarships to pay for educational costs of leaving the public school system. Read the full article. The scholarship amount varies each school year. For the 2022-23 year, it will be $4,298.60. So the state will be putting up $12,938,786 for…
Beckley Register-Herald - State legislators, past and present, who have voted to undercut support of public education should be embarrassed. Public funding for our colleges and universities in West Virginia has been trimmed consistently over the past decade just as both the state’s students and its economy have needed a hand up. Read the full…
Mountain State Spotlight - Last summer, the West Virginia University Foundation — the institution’s fundraising arm — touted in a news release that it had raised a record $270 million. Read the full article. Foundation President and CEO Cindi Roth said the number “speaks volumes about the generosity and commitment of our alumni and friends.” WVU President…
In the first months after the federal government began issuing monthly payments of the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC), West Virginia saw a significant decrease in food insufficiency. West Virginians largely spent their CTC payments on household essentials, with food being at the top of the list, followed by utilities, clothing, and paying down debt.…
Charleston Gazette-Mail, Huntington Herald-Dispatch, Williamson Daily News - West Virginia's senior senator has suggested restricting a program currently sending families $250-$300 per month, per child -- a move that could hamper education outcomes and reduce the number of children in the state receiving the benefit by more than half. Read the full article. According to…
Public News Service - Degrading mental health among the nation's K-12 students over the past year and a half has alarmed health professionals. Experts say West Virginia could use federal funding to help address students' needs, at a time when the novel coronavirus crisis shows no signs of letting up. Read the full article. Tamicah Owens…
This issue brief was written by the WVCBP's summer research associate, Tamicah Owens. Introduction The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) provides states with assistance and broad economic relief as the nation recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Act also includes $123 billion in new, flexible funding known as the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief…