PHEAA Grants for ESU and Other PASSHE Pennsylvania Resident Students Delayed

East Stroudsburg University officials are informing some 1,500 fall 2009 semester students who are counting on Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) state grants, that the grants will be delayed. The 2009-2010 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania budget has not yet been approved and one of the results of the budget impasse is that Pennsylvania resident students attending not just ESU but all PASSHE universities will be affected by the delay.

The university is assuring the 1,500 affected students that a plan has been established to allow the use of anticipated PHEAA grant amounts as credit towards their fall tuition bill. The delay in receiving the grants will also impact students' ability to pay other enrollment related bills such as books, and rent for those living off campus. Campus officials are also appealing to off campus student housing landlords to consider allowing some lee-way to students who are relying on the funds to pay rent.

About 750 of the ESU grant recipients are relying on the maximum PHEAA grant of $3,507. While the university's solution to the delay in receiving the grants requires some re-programming of billing and accounting systems, it is designed to ensure that students will be able to enroll as planned for the fall semester. In a message to the students and the campus community, University President, Dr. Robert J. Dillman said he is confident that a State budget will be passed by the fall.