House budget does more for higher ed in state

With the release of the Washington state House of Representatives budget, not just education funding has come to the forefront, but higher education.

With the act of including a tuition freeze for our state’s higher ed students, along with over $72 million to help expand the state need grant to an additional 6,000 students, the House Democrats have shown a huge contrast with the Senate Majority Coalition.

The Senate budget released recently did not include a tuition freeze nor any additional funding for the state need grant, effectively moving the costs onto students. Without a tuition freeze, middle-class students from Clover Park High School in Lakewood would see tuitions rise and their dreams get further away from them if they do not take out loans.

While a student such as myself who hails from Everett and spent high school homeless at Cocoon House and relies incredibly on the state need grant, they run the risk of not being able to get financial aid and not being able to break the cycle of poverty and achieving all they can be.

So I urge everyone to call their local state representatives and senators and urge them to support the house budget. It’s the only one that looks out for the students, that makes an effort to help the most disadvantaged among us achieve their dreams.

Charles Adkins

Director of Legislative Affairs for Students at The Evergreen State College

Everett