To Bremer, they’re something of a lifeline. She might not be able to go to school ­— let alone transfer to MSU — without them.

“I’m working, but only so much of that can go to college,” she said. “It was crucial for me to have the Pell Grant. It was really, really important to me.”

Bremer is among the hundreds of thousands of college students in Michigan and millions across the U.S. who rely on the need-based, nonrepayable grants to help pay for tuition, textbooks and other costs associated with going to college.

Congress has pumped billions of dollars into the Pell Grant program throughout the decades, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Education.

During the 2009-10 academic year, for example, more than $30 billion was distributed to 8.3 million students. During that time period at MSU, 8,685 students received Pell Grant money totaling $39.4 million.

Stimulus funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funneled more than $17 billion extra dollars to the program atop congressional appropriations of more than $21 billion, totaling $38.8 billion, education department statistics show.

Additionally, Congress created a pipeline of $30 billion more for the program when health care reform passed in March 2010. Attached to the reform was the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, which streamlined a number of financial aid processes.

As estimated by the Congressional Budget Office, or CBO, federal savings generated by the act would create the $30 billion in extra funding for the Pell program.

But not all is quiet on the Pell Grant front.

During its deliberations in December 2010, Congress failed to pass a dozen appropriations bills that would funnel money to various government programs using discretionary funds, said Mark Burnham, MSU’s associate vice president for governmental affairs.

Burnham, who lobbies Congress in Washington, D.C., on MSU’s behalf, said legislators agreed to continue funding the program at levels from the year prior, ensuring the grants would be funded until March 4.

But after that, what happens to funds for the program is unknown. Until Congress acts, a $5.7 billion gap in Pell Grant funding remains unaddressed.

And that, experts say, is cause for concern.

Pell problems

The maximum Pell Grant a full-time, eligible student is able to receive is $5,550. That amount has increased steadily throughout the past five years, according to data from the federal education department.

But analysts have predicted a showdown about key spending issues between the Democratic Senate and Republican-dominated House in the coming year. The Wall Street Journal predicted last month legislative inaction could lead to Pell Grant reductions by as much as $845 per student. Were that to happen, Pell Grants for some students might disappear entirely, the Journal reported.

Historically speaking, Democrats are larger supporters of continued — and increased — money for Pell Grants, said Haley Chitty, spokesman for the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, or NASFAA.

NASFAA is a nonprofit organization that represents financial aid officers across the U.S. and advocates for increased support for federal financial aid.

Still, saying Democrats throw more support behind the program might be a gross overgeneralization as many Republicans have voiced their support for Pell, Chitty said.

Regardless, the budget crisis and national economic outlook has created a dire situation for any program so much as brushed by federal dollars, no matter how old, he said.

“There’s no program that’s off the table in terms of spending cuts,” Chitty said. “Programs like the Pell Grant, which generally have been pretty safe in the past, have all been up for debate at this point.”

Chitty’s assertions seem to be echoed by Dave Yonkman, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton. In an e-mailed statement, Yonkman said Rogers historically has been a staunch supporter of Pell Grant funding.

Rogers represents a district that includes MSU and East Lansing.
But with uncertainty in all aspects of government, Congress must examine everything closely, he said.

“With record deficits and a massive national debt threatening future generations, the only responsible thing to do is to re-examine every federal dollar spent, no matter how important the program,” Yonkman said.

U.S. Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn, is not convinced Pell Grant funding should be cut.

Dingell represents a district that includes two universities: the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University. The longest current member of Congress said decreases to Pell funding would drive many Pell-eligible students toward debt by way of loans.

“We must push back on any shortfall,” Dingell said in an e-mailed statement. “Congress needs to help ensure the Pell Grant award keeps up with the rising cost of a college education.”

Chitty said NASFAA understands fiscal and economic problems but still will push for the Pell Grant.

“It’s really important for Congress to plug this hole and to provide a steady stream of this money,” he said. “You’re not just talking about current students, but you’re also talking about future students.”

Spartan support

MSU’s financial aid administrators paid attention to congressional proceedings last month, when funding for the Pell Grant program seemed to hit a snag, said Val Meyers, associate director of the Office of Financial Aid.

Meyers said MSU officials were less concerned with students who obtain Pell support being able to pay for schooling because of recent measures by the university to provide more financial aid for students.

When it passed the university’s budget for the 2010-11 year and a preliminary budget for 2011-12, the MSU Board of Trustees also approved $23 million between the two years in funding for financial aid through the university.

For 2010-11, $10.8 million was added to the pot. An estimated $12.9 million is scheduled to be included in the budget next year.

Yearly tuition increases, among other methods, help MSU offer financial aid to students who need it, Meyers said.

“Gains are made when the tuition is set,” she said. “The university will allocate a certain portion of that to go to financial aid for needy students.”

Administrators are not looking ahead at potential Pell Grant shortfalls quite yet, Meyers said, because financial aid officials typically do not meet until February or March to discuss the next academic year’s support numbers.

“We’ll be paying a lot more attention in March,” Meyers said. “If it does look like there is going to be a shortfall, we’re going to try and prepare for that.”

Much like the rest of colleges and universities in the U.S., MSU and other Big Ten institutions have experienced increases in the number of students receiving Pell support throughout the past decade.

Numbers provided by financial aid officials at a majority of Big Ten institutions highlight this. The figures from the 2005-06 academic year through 2009-10 show jumps as low as 100 or so students to 1,600 or more students.

The dollar amount attached to each school’s receiving of grants grew by tens of millions of dollars during that time.

Many factors contribute to the increase in the number of students receiving the grants, and officials at each school typically agreed the economy was the largest factor. Also atop the list are changes in eligibility as set by Congress and increases in the amount of aid available.

“The economy’s tanking, so we’re having a number of families whose incomes have dropped dramatically,” said Susan Fischer, head of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Office of Student Financial Services. “People have lost their livelihoods.”

Yet differences between students in Michigan and students in Wisconsin — and other states where Big Ten institutions are — differ greatly.

Wisconsin, for instance, underscores a major difference because universities there do not keep tuition dollars received. Instead, that money is collected by the state and redistributed among the universities.

The university has worked with students to implement a program that allows the university to use some portion of fees paid to fund need-based financial aid and faculty hiring.

But because of the way tuition money is distributed, students there are presented with a much different scenario should Pell funds begin to dry up.

“If we don’t get the Pell, we don’t get the Pell,” Fischer said, adding recent measures by Wisconsin’s chancellor have helped alleviate financial stress on students. “We still have a lot of unmet need, so we’re not able to meet everybody’s need.”

Speculation abound

As uncertainty permeates the minds of Pell-receiving students at MSU, in the Big Ten and across the U.S., administrators say patience is the best policy.

Many lawmakers in Washington, D.C., are new and need an acclimation period before business can be conducted, Burnham said.

What’s more, full congressional committee and subcommittee assignments have yet to be made. That affects decisions on all government policy because committee and subcommittee work typically is where legislative action begins.

And realistically, there are plenty of other things to consider in addition to Pell Grant support.

“The real issue is the decisions right now are not being made specifically about Pell,” Burnham said. “Rather, they’re macro decisions that are going to be made that affect a number of programs.”

What is at stake, Chitty said, is millions of students whose impact on helping the economy will be minimal should they drop out of college.

“This would be one of a few times that they actually reduced the grant,” Chitty said. “We’re talking about competing in the future economy. Getting these kids in and out of school is critical.”

Olivia Grzasko, an apparel and textile design senior at MSU who receives Pell funds, said any sort of loss in funding would be bad news for students who depend on the grants to survive.

Grzasko is from Chicago, and the nearly $3,000 she receives under the program each semester has been instrumental, she said.

“A decrease in the amount of a Pell Grant could lead to a decrease in the amount of credits (students) can take, which would make it longer for them to graduate,” Grzasko said. “It could make some students not come to MSU.”

A lot, Burnham said, is contingent on the pace of Congress.

“It’s going to be a work in progress,” he said. “They’re going to have to hit the ground running, and we’re hopeful the results will work out well for everybody.”