6A = THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS
THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2003
Aid can still help students survive tuition increases
According to the Office of Student Financial Aid's "Affording KU" guide, many prestigious publications have cited the University of Kansas as a top-quality university well worth the low price.
Of course, one of those publications was Good Housekeeping, which no doubt had to take time out from its intense coverage of diet tips and PMS remedies
Nonetheless, the University does offer its students a quality education. It's just hard to remember that when we're faced with yet another tuition increase this fall.
But what have we always
learned to do when our pockets turn up penniless? That's right —borrow it. Students who can no longer afford their Ramen noodles take note: The financial aid office, located at 150 Strong, will be accepting federal financial aid applications through June 30.
Although the priority date of March 1 has passed, Stephanie Covington, associate director of the financial aid office, said students should still apply. The priority date for the State of Kansas Student Aid Application is April 1.
Nicole Roche
nnicole@kansan.com
"Get them in as soon as possible," Covington said. "Of course the earlier you can apply the
better."
The financial aid office presented students with more than $1 million for the 2001-2002 year. Covington said. Whether a grant, loan or scholarship, 53 percent of students received some form of financial aid through the University.
The first step toward receiving financial aid is filling out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, in the financial aid office or at fasfa.ed.gov. Students will have to obtain a PIN at www.pin.ed.gov to file the application.
The application is a 99-question form that can help determine what financial assistance, if any, the student can receive. The student's parents complete 25 of the questions, which mainly concern income and tax information.
If students qualify, they will be sent a Student Aid Report which should be reviewed and corrected if need be. Once this is taken care
of, the financial aid office will send the students a financial award letter.
Covington said a major factor that determined a student's eligibility was the expected family contribution. Federal processors take a student's estimated cost of attendance and subtract the expected family contribution to determine financial need.
If a student's dad is Bill Gates, for example, he won't see a dime.
Covington also encouraged wealthy students to apply just in case. She said she had seen several times when a parent had
withdrawn support for the student.
"Sometimes there's an argument or grades didn't come back as expected," she said.
The financial aid office can process a student's aid application much quicker if it's already on file, Covington said. Students can decline the aid if they end up not needing it, Covington said.
But who's going to turn away money?
Each week reporter Nicole Roché covers a different consumer issue. She is a Wichita senior in journalism.
Graphic design student sculpts, draws handy works
By Megan Hickerson
hickerson@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Every face in the crowd and every name in the phonebook has a story behind it. Every week, Kansan writer Megan Hickerson tells the story of a randomly selected KU student.
Give Michelle Agustin a hand for her art achievements, and she will draw it.
Faces in the Crowd
Agustin, Kansas City, Mo., freshman, helped sculpt a 7-
foot-tall sculpture of hands last summer. Agustin worked alongside 15 other art students to complete the masterpiece.
groups; sculpture, silk painting, music and mural.
Because she had never sculpted before, she worked under the direction of art teachers at Studio 150 - a student/community art organization based in Kansas City, Mo.
The students split into four
Agustin questioned her $7 per hour pay as she began sculpting in the sun.
"We worked in tents in downtown Kansas City." Agustin said. "It sucked working in the heat. I almost passed out a couple of times."
The completed statue now stands in Bartle Hall, 301 W. 13th St., Kansas City, Mo.
Just because her work at Studio 150 is over doesn't mean that her work with hands is done. Agustin is a graphic design major but is considering taking some sculpture classes at the University of Kansas.
"I have a thing for hands," Agustin said. "Hands are so beautiful. Lots of people have hand infatuations."
She said hands were the most difficult body part to draw — that's why she began working with them. Getting skin to look real and drawing knuckles challenges her.
Agustin notices hands everywhere she goes. She often looks at a person's hand before she looks at his face.
"I always look underneath people's nails," she said.
Agustin said her boyfriend, Lance Bower, had perfect hands. Although she has drawn his portrait, she has never drawn just his hands.
"She's always been interested in hands and gestures," said Bower of Kansas City, Mo. "It's really not some crazy fetish."
Agustin can finish a hand sketch in only 10 minutes. However, a detailed drawing can take her up to three hours to complete.
Although Agustin attributes her flawless fingers to moisturizers and nail files, she isn't a fan of manicures and treatments.
"That stuff isn't for me," Agustin said. "I'm an 'au naturel' girl."
Edited by Andrew Ward
Dan Nelson/Kansan
Michelle Agustin, Kansas City, Mo., freshman, shows off one or her drawings in her residence hall room. Agustin worked on a group sculpture last summer in Kansas City, Mo., that sold for $1,500.