| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 46.90 |
| Liaison | Hannes Gerhardt |
| Submission Date | March 30, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of West Georgia
PA-7: Affordability and Access
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.78 / 4.00 |
Hannes
Gerhardt Sustainability Director Department of Geosciences |
Does the institution have policies and programs to make it accessible and affordable to low-income students?:
A brief description of any policies and programs to minimize the cost of attendance for low-income students:
UWG participates in the US Department of Education's need-based programs, including the Federal Pell Grant program, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant program (FSEOG), Federal Work Study program (FWS), Federal Perkins Loan Program, and the Federal Subsidized Loan program. The university also has several need-based scholarships coordinated through the institution's endowment that are awarded to financially needy students. A recent university program has been raising "gap funding" specifically targeted at students who have financial difficulty meeting the last-dollar costs of attending the university. The students are primarily those with remaining financial need who also have exhausted all federal loan eligibility (aggregate limits) and those dependent students with remaining financial need whose parents have been denied PLUS loans and have remaining balances due to the university as a result.
A brief description of any programs to equip the institution’s faculty and staff to better serve students from low-income backgrounds:
In various training workshops, for instance in the First-Year Seminar workshops, UWG emphasizes the characteristics of our incoming student population, especially socio-economic markers like Pell eligibility.
A brief description of the institution’s programs to guide and prepare students and families from low-income backgrounds for higher education:
There are a number of tools and tips offered in orientation that could be particularly helpful to low income students, such as a focus on financial literacy.
A brief description of the institution's scholarships for low-income students:
A variety of need-based scholarships are offered to low-income students, as demonstrated by this website: www.westga.edu/scholarships
A brief description of the institution’s targeted outreach to recruit students from low-income backgrounds:
1) UWG offers to waive the application fee for students that are eligible, as defined by college board or NACAC (national association of college admission counselors).
2) UWG has a recruiter who works just in the lower-income areas (South Fulton, Dekalb, etc). She focuses on applicvaation completion and college education.
3) Both SAT and ACT give free low-income names out for mailing purposes. Admissions always takes these and sends the common mailer out to this group.
A brief description of the institution’s other policies or programs to make the institution accessible and affordable to low-income students:
Does the institution have policies and programs to support non-traditional students?:
A brief description of the institution’s scholarships provided specifically for part-time students:
A brief description of the institution’s on-site child care facility, partnership with a local facility, and/or subsidies or financial support to help meet the child care needs of students:
The University offers a pre-K on campus that is used as a education learning laboratory.
This quality educational program provides the opportunity for aspiring teachers to observe and participate in practical experiences while supervised by University faculty and staff - all without leaving campus. UWG Pre-K has space for 86 students in three classes of 22 students each and one class of 20 students. As there are always more children seeking spaces in our program than there are seats available, we use a lottery process to fill these classes.
A brief description of the institution’s other policies and programs to support non-traditional students:
We have UWG Policy 3.10 for the Center for Adult Learners and Veterans.
Exemption of Mandatory Fees for students using military tuition assistance (~15 students per year)
Out-of state waivers for any student using VA education benefits (~12-15 students per year)
Military learning articulation (afforded to every veteran with no guarantee of credit awarded)
Military Withdrawal (~1-2 uses per year)
Priority Registration for all veterans and students using VA education benefits (~315 students per semester).
Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (tracking accessibility and affordability)? (If data is not available, select 'No'):
The percentage of entering students that are low-income (0-100):
The graduation/success rate for low-income students (0-100):
On average, the percentage of need that was met for students who were awarded any need-based aid (e.g. as reported to the U.S. Common Data Set initiative, item H2) (0-100):
The percentage of students graduating with no interest-bearing student loan debt or for whom no out-of-pocket tuition is required (i.e. the percentage of graduates who have not taken out interest-bearing loans) (0-100):
Estimated percentage of students that participate in or directly benefit from the institution’s policies and programs to support low-income and non-traditional students (0-100):
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.