Starting fall of 2023, the University of Wisconsin will implement Bucky’s Pell Pathway, a program that will the cover full cost of attendance for low-income Wisconsin residents.
Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin introduced the program to the Board of Regents Feb. 9 with the aim of decreasing undergraduate debt by funding more than just education, according to UW News.
Through a combination of grants, scholarships and work-study programs, Bucky’s Pell Pathway plans to fund first-year students who qualify for the Pell Grant. Incoming freshmen will be fully funded for four consecutive years, while transfer students will be funded for two, according to the Office of Student Financial Aid’s website.
Pell Grant eligibility is determined based on the cost of attendance minus any expected financial contribution from the student’s family. Since Pell federal dollars are generally limited to tuition costs, many undergraduate recipients take out extra loans for additional expenses.
“We will ensure that your full financial need is met – tuition, segregated fees, books and supplies and other personal expenses,” Faith said.
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According to the Director of Student Financial Aid Helen Faith, the pathway builds on Bucky’s Tuition Promise, a 5-year-old program that offers financial aid to cover tuition and segregated fees for eligible, in-state students.
Both programs are last-dollar awards, meaning that UW provides the remaining funding needed after totaling other funding sources, including outside grants and scholarships and federal and state aid. Instead of taxpayer funds, additional program money is sourced from private and institutional donations
The addition of Bucky’s Pell’s Pathway is intended to push back against the recent decline of state financial aid to Wisconsin students. The losses have caused undergraduate students to rely on institutional aid, according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum.
“For many students, the expected family contribution is zero. The main thing is that we can serve as a model as to how to create a program that is clear, simple to navigate, and predictable,” Faith said.
Bucky’s Pell Pathway also provides academic support, social networks and aid in securing off-campus housing. Additionally, students can take part in welcome events, FAFSA filing workshops and career coaching. Basic needs assistance for students struggling with housing or food insecurity is also included, Faith said.
Along with the announcement of Bucky Pell’s Pathway, UW announced that the requisite of minimum annual household income to be eligible for Bucky’s Tuition Promise will be raised from $60,000 to $65,000, increasing funding opportunities for a wider range of students in need of aid, according to UW News.
So far, Bucky’s Tuition Promise has given nearly 5,000 students aid. UW expects that the vast majority of students who meet the requirements for Bucky’s Tuition Promise will also be eligible for Bucky Pell’s Pathway.
For other universities in UW System, the Wisconsin Tuition Promise, also launching in fall of 2023, will cover the cost of tuition and fees for those with household incomes less than $62,000 per year.
Students will be automatically notified if they qualify for either program based on their Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, according to the Office of Student Financial Aid.
Between 2002 and 2021, the percent of UW tuition covered for in-state students through Wisconsin and Pell Grants fell from 91.4% to only 69%, the forum said. Further, student enrollment across Wisconsin colleges fell by a combined 13.4% between 2010 to 2019.
Buck’s Pell Pathway plans to cover these gaps in tuition that state and Pell Grants alone cannot fully pay to ensure that all Wisconsin students have full financial opportunity to get an education at UW, according to UW News.
Anna Jacobson is an in-state student at UW from Green Bay majoring in elementary education special education. Although her tuition is not funded through Bucky’s Tuition Promise, she thinks Mnookin’s new Pell Pathway program is an important step to ensure that Wisconsin residents who need fully-paid aid to go to school here will be able to get it.
“People from all different backgrounds deserve to have access to the same opportunities and get aid if needed,” Jacobson said.
Bucky’s Tuition Promise and Bucky’s Pell Pathway aim to increase support for UW students by providing hope for the future, especially for the state’s lowest income households. According to Faith, the goal of the new program is to make graduating from UW student loan and debt-free a real possibility for Wisconsin students in need.
“Whether their family chooses to take loans out, whether a student is able to work or not, the intent is to make it possible. We hope to pave the way to offer education throughout the entire UW System,” Faith said.
