In his column, “Anticipating unknown unknowns” Gregory Morrison states that “the differential [housing] fees... have been abolished.” We feel it is necessary to clarify that the fees remain in place, but do not apply to students on financial aid.
In addition to raising over $300 million for financial aid and limiting or eliminating parental contribution and student loans based on family income, the Financial Aid Initiative of 2005-2008 also eliminated the differential on-campus housing costs for students on financial aid. As a result, students receive financial aid based on the actual cost of their housing no matter where they live on campus. This means that it does not cost a student on aid more to live in a single room than it does for them to live in a triple. However, this and other pertinent information has often been unclear to the students who base decisions on such factors.
Students on financial aid must be accurately informed about how their financial aid factors into the costs associated with being a Duke student beyond just tuition. Through this and other efforts, they should be able to participate in campus life in the same way as students who do not receive aid. Duke must not just consider financial resources as a barrier to enrollment, but also to equal participation in campus life.
Alison Rabil, Assistant Vice Provost and Director, Office of Financial Aid
Brooke Kingsland, Chair, DSG Financial Aid Advisory Committee
Trinity ’11
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