Accessible education for all

Liberty University is helping more students afford college by offering the Middle America Scholarship (MAS) to new resident undergraduate students starting
Fall 2019.

The MAS is unique, because Liberty is the first school to offer a scholarship of this kind. The scholarship is designed to give students from middle-income families a scholarship to equal  the amount of the Federal Pell Grant, which offers qualifying students up to $6,095 a year.

“It’s not federal Pell money, but it’s almost like we’re guaranteeing that students will get full Pell,” Executive Vice President of Finance Robert Ritz said.

To qualify for the scholarship, students must be full-time, freshmen, undergraduate, residential students. They also need to have an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of $18,000 or less. According to Ritz, the program is currently only for incoming students, but will most likely be expanded to include returning students as Fall 2019 freshman progress into future years.

“We’ve increased the aid a couple times in the past, but this is a big, new leap into need-based aid for families,” Ritz said.

Ritz said the program was designed for families earning approximately $35,000 to $95,000 per year. However, the range will vary, depending on each family. For example, the EFC of a three-person family earning $50,000 a year would look very different from the EFC of a seven-person family with the same annual income. The deciding factor in a student’s eligibility for the MAS is whether or not their EFC is below
$18,000 a year.

While about 51 percent of applicants from low-income families and 63 percent of applicants from high-income families attend Liberty, only about 40 percent of applicants from middle-income families attend Liberty.

The EFC is calculated through the FAFSA, which looks at savings, income, wages and other financial factors. Ritz said that, while some families may not feel like their EFC accurately reflects their financial situation, it is a general number that offers a snapshot.

According to Ritz, the scholarship is not for students with a higher EFC, since Liberty is already getting students with a higher EFC, at about 63 percent of students who have filled out an application. 

If a student qualifies for it their freshman year, they will continue to receive the scholarship throughout their remaining
college years.

Ritz explained the scholarship was started because there was a gap between low-income families and high-income families. Students from low-income families receive Pell Grants totaling $6,095 to help with their education, while high-income families are more likely to afford  education costs. But middle-income families, who often make too much to qualify for Pell Grants, often struggle to  comfortably cover education costs.

According to Ritz, if students with no EFC applies to Liberty, about 49 to 51 percent end up coming to Liberty, because they will receive help with need-based funds like the federal Pell Grants. On the other end, about 63 percent of students with a very high EFC end up coming to Liberty. However, Ritz said that only about 40 percent of middle-income students end up coming to Liberty, and this is because they have little, if any, federal need-based aid.

The MAS program is expected to cost a total of about $17.3 million for the class of 2023, which is expected to consist of approximately 1,600 students.

“We have to ease into it over the years, because this number will grow,” Ritz said. “This is only one group of students going through for four years. … We have to make sure this is successful, and that this money really helps families afford
Liberty.”

As the scholarship is currently only available to incoming freshmen, not every student will qualify for it. Ritz offered a few tips for returning students and students whose families’ EFCs are above the threshold. He said doing little things, such as looking for cheaper housing and meal plans,
can add up. 

He also advised students to not overlook work study programs, which can help cover miscellaneous expenses such as books. Ritz said an added benefit of work study programs is that unlike off-campus jobs, the money earned from work study does not count toward a student’s EFC during the subsequent academic year.

More information about the MAS can be found at https://www.liberty.edu/student-financial-services/scholarships/middle-america-scholarship/.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *