To the Editor:
As a parent of a current freshman, I am very saddened to read about Guilford’s proposed 6.5% increase in tuition. Although my son has been fortunate enough to receive a great deal of financial aid in his first year at the school, it has still been extremely difficult for our family to continue to subsidize the part of his tuition and expenses left over.
Even after winning four very generous and prestigious scholarships for this year, we were still left to pay approximately an additional $12,000 this year. We are a working class family with a lot of other financial pressures including large medical debts and expenses. Were we naive to think that we could afford to help our son through a wonderful, prestigious school such as Guilford?
Obviously, his past accomplishments certainly qualify him to be there, and he worked very hard to be able to get admitted to such a school. Last year, we also faced an unexpected tuition increase at the beginning of the academic year, which really increased our burden. Is this something we should expect every year?
I hope the committee will think long and hard about the tuition policies as traditional students can react with their feet also – but certainly not voluntarily. Perhaps the purpose of the school needs to be rethought. What are the main goals of the school? No school can be everything to everyone and Guilford has a long tradition of occupying a unique niche in the world of academia. For example, are more varsity sports teams really needed? Those are available in abundance in many colleges and universities. The traditions and learning opportunities that are a large part of Guilford’s appeal are not so easily found in other educational institutions.
I hope that no one will misunderstand my reaction or interpret it in any way as an indictment of Guilford’s financial aid program. I know that they really reached out to our family to make it possible for my son to be there. But I hope that the tuition committee really thinks long and hard about this increase and future increases and their impact on traditional students and their families. Unfortunately, not all well qualified students come from families with sufficient income to weather continuous rising costs. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t deserve a place at the table so to speak.
We will continue to work and sacrifice as long as possible in order for our son to remain at Guilford. But please remember our family and others like us as you consider this increase and those that will certainly come in the future. We have received a lot of assistance from Guilford and we are most appreciative. But of course, the interference of the Federal government also complicates the financial process. Their FAFSA formulas are in great need of overhaul to bring them up to a standard that reflects financial reality for families today. But that is a subject for another day. Thank you for your time and patience in considering my letter.
Sincerely,
Debby O. Wallace