Students, parents and college administrators gathered at the Conn. Capitol on Monday, Mar 1. Colleges, and members of the community rallied in response to Governor Malloy’s proposed budget to cut 25 percent of state funding for grants given to students of private and community schools and 10 percent from state school students.
Governor Malloy’s proposed budget cuts worry many Connecticut citizens, with the rise of tuition, competition for scholarship aid, and limited funds some fear that students will not be able to afford a college education.

Along with the state proposed cut Federal cuts are being considered as well. “Well, there is a combination of both state and federal action the feds have already begun to look at cutting Pell grants which are essential building blocks for finical aid. The state now looks at ,making cuts which may or may not be manageable ,” says Bill Cibes Chancellor Emeritus Connecticut State University System.

Many Connecticut college students rely heavily on state funding as their means for support and were surprised at the news of Governor Malloy’s budget cuts.Some Connecticut college students look at other means of education if they cannot afford their current schooling, competing with other students for funds and admission. Private and community college students oppose the budget cuts seeing them as unfair because the private and community cuts are deeper than state schools.

Carleen Alverado, a university of Hartford student who attended the rally believes if “more Connecticut residents who go to independent college are not going to want to go there anymore and there are going to over crowd the state schools. with the overcrowding they won’t have as many to fill the spots, that means people will leave Connecticut and that will be a loss to the state of Connecticut.”

With both college attendance and tuition rising, and aid dropping Colleges along with students worry about how the budget cuts will affect college enrollment. Bill Cibes, a spokesperson at the rally, stated “I think higher education is a critical part for the future economy for the state of Connecticut. If we don’t graduate well educated students we’re never going to be competitive in the global economy. “