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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5,2014
PAGE 3
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US government lightens PLUS loan qualifications
KELSIE JENNINGS
@kelcjen
Next year, it may be easier for students to pay for college with help from the U.S. Department of Education, which is making it easier for parents to qualify for PLUS loans, especially those with bad financial credit. Changes to PLUS loan regulations were published in the Federal Register on Oct. 23, but will go into effect July 1, 2015.
PLUS loans are federal loans that require a parent to be the co-signer for an undergraduate student, since students usually don't have enough credit history to qualify for loans on their own. The PLUS loan is used to cover the leftover cost if students still come up short after other financial aid has been applied to their bills. PLUS loan interest rates are currently fixed at 7.21 percent until June 30, 2015, and parents can't borrow any amount past what is needed, according to a video from the financial aid office.
To get the loan, parents must pass a credit check, and if they don't pass, the PLUS loan is one less option students have to pay for college. Students with little to no credit history and whose parents don't have good enough credit are
at a disadvantage when it comes to paying for college and graduating, so the department decided to redefine what is considered "adverse credit history"
According to a press release from the education department, the definition of "adverse credit history" had not been changed since 1994 when the Direct Loan program started, so the department has redefined it to match the current economy, since economic changes over the last 20 years have affected many families.
Matt Melvin, vice provost of Enrollment Management, said the changes with the loans shouldn't have much of an impact on enrollment. For academic year 2013-14, 2,580 PLUS loans were processed for undergraduate students, according to Brenda Maigaard, assistant vice provost for Financial Aid and Scholarships. Maigaard said their department already provides online loan counseling through its website, but students and parents can also come to the office and speak with someone.
If parents don't pass the credit check for a PLUS loan, they can either apply with an "endorser", which would be a co-signer who would also
have to pass a credit check, or they can appeal the credit decision, according to Maigaard.
"I don't think that students are necessarily a reflection of their parents," said Hannah Sroor, a junior from Lee's Summit, Mo. "I think we're adults and it's shifting the responsibility, so if the student needs a loan, I think that they should be able to get that."
Mearny Aramovich, a junior from Overland Park, uses other federal loans and an academic scholarship to pay for college and said those have been enough to cover what she needs.
Aramovich said she thinks the cost of going to the University is pretty average, but said it's definitely not the cheapest. She said the changes made to the PLUS loans will be good for students who need extra financial help.
"I think that if it's more accessible and it's going to make it easier for more people to go to college, then I think it's great," she said.
If students have questions about financial aid, they can visit affordability.ku.edu, or if they want to know the difference between different loans, they can find out at ku.financialaidtv.com.
- Edited by Alyssa Scott
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Jozee Johnson of West Virginia waits to enter Kemper Arena during the United Professional Horseman's Association National Championship in Kansas City, Mo. A developer withdrew plans to renovate Kemper Arena after the American Royal Association threatened a lawsuit, a letter obtained by The Kansas City Star shows.
Group threatens developer with lawsuit over Kemper Arena
KANSAS CITY. Mo. — A developer withdrew plans to renovate Kemper Arena after the American Royal Association threatened a lawsuit, a letter obtained by The Kansas City Star shows.
An attorney for American Royal, which hosts livestock exhibitions and professional rodeos, told Foutch Brothers in the Oct. 17 letter to quit its efforts to have Kemper Arena declared a historic structure, the newspaper reported. The designation would have helped with financing for Foutch's proposal to turn the arena into a youth sports facility.
"We demand you cease your efforts with respect to the historic designation applications you filed over the city's objection," states the letter to Foutch's lawyer, John Fairfield. "While we have high confidence you will not be successful, those applications impair and impact property which my clients helped to finance and which we have under lease for the next several decades."
When Foutch announced it was dropping its Kemper Arena proposal, representatives of the development firm declined to give more detail about why, only saying the decision was prompted by "circumstances beyond their control."
Foutch and American Royal have spent months pitching plans for the future of the arena. While Foutch's proposal would preserve the arena, plans by American Royal call for tearing it down and replacing it with a multipurpose building.
City Manager Troy Schulte said he was shown the letter by Steve Foutch and that it was the reason the firm backed out.
The letter claims a historic designation would negatively affect American Royal's long-term lease with the city, which continues through 2045, for the American Royal Complex that includes the arena.
Kemper Arena has lost nearly all of its events to the downtown Sprint Center in recent years and is currently idle.
Though the arena is only about 40 years old it could still qualify for a historic designation because it has hosted the 1976 Republican National Convention and many championship sports competitions, said Elizabeth Rosin, a Kansas City historic preservation consultant.
Associated Press
This Saturday, KU ROTC will offer a 24-hour vigil at the campus war memorials in honor of Veterans Day. The vigil will begin at 10 a.m. with Taps being played at the top
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of the Campanile
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