Financial Aid Initiative: Change we can see

In response to the Sept. 15 letter to the editor, "Where's my financial aid initiative?" by Nicole Diaz Nelson, Nelson's attack on President Richard Brodhead and financial aid at Duke was misguided and discouraging to say the least.

For the past three years we have been working alongside the Duke Financial Aid Initiative with the goal of making a Duke education accessible to all qualified students. Although we sympathize with Nelson in her struggle to afford Duke, we would like to share some facts about Duke Financial Aid and some of the achievements of the Financial Aid Initiative that may give a clearer picture of the unique challenges confronting Duke.

Duke is one of the few institutions in the country that is committed to need-blind undergraduate admission for United States citizens and permanent residents and meeting 100 percent of these students' demonstrated financial need. Brodhead is dedicated to maintaining this commitment even as the amount of money required per year to fund financial aid grows rapidly. For example, Duke budgeted $63 million for undergraduate need-based aid this year, an increase of $10 million more than last year. Duke faces a unique challenge with maintaining this promise. Compared to most of its peer institutions, Duke is young and did not have the privilege of having a large endowment during the 1990s economic boom. Consequently, only one-fifth of money needed to cover financial aid at Duke comes from its endowment whereas other institutions' endowments cover up to 90 percent of their need-based aid programs.

In order to start to bridge this gap, Duke launched FAI in 2005 with the purpose of raising $300 million for its endowment by the end of 2008; its largest goal being an increase in the permanent endowment for undergraduate need-based aid. Thus far, the Initiative has helped Duke to make several important changes. Parents who earn less than $60,000 in yearly income are no longer expected to pay tuition. Loans are no longer part of the financial aid package of families making less than $40,000 a year, have been reduced for families with incomes between $40,000 and $100,000 and are capped at $5,000 per year for families that earn more than $100,000. Beyond these changes, Duke has always been committed to providing students on financial aid with all the opportunities Duke offers. Financial aid can be transferred for study abroad, and Duke offers a summer earnings replacement grant for students who take unpaid internships. As FAI continues to meet its fundraising goals we may see more changes in financial aid at Duke. Rest assured, Ms. Nelson, the administration is focused on affording students from all economic backgrounds the opportunity to attend Duke.

Kylie Harrell

Trinity '09

Co-chair, Financial Aid Initiative

Student Advisory Council