August, 19 2009

KU Faculty and Staff,

As you may be aware, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania does not yet have a budget. This complicates the educational process for our students. Most notably, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) has no funding to award state grants for the 2009-2010 academic year.

More than 3,300 KU students will be affected by PHEAA’s current inability to provide grants for this fall. The potential impact could be significant since the majority will rely on PHEAA funds for various reasons; i.e.: books, rent and transportation. However, students can be assured that their enrollment at the university will not be affected due to this matter.

The university is hopeful that the budget impasse will be resolved soon. In the meantime, we remain committed to providing all available assistance to our students. Both the Bursar and Financial Aid Services are prepared to deal with any issue that may arise for state grant recipients. We are also communicating with the affected students regarding this situation through a mailed postcard.

Once the budget situation has been resolved, PHEAA will inform the student and the university about their grant and any changes that may have occurred. Students will be prompted to view their grant at www.pheaa.org through Account Access.

Thank you for all you do to ensure our students’ success and best wishes for a productive new academic year.

Sincerely,
F. Javier Cevallos
President