Video contest winner announced

Got Tuition has announced the winner of our video contest. Congratulations Ben Redmond!



You can see our announcement page here.
Ben was also on the line for our most recent teleconference, which you can listen to here.
As part of his prize, Ben was asked to blog for the Huffington Post. You can read his entry here.

More PA Board of Education testimony

Karyn Reinhold gave testimony on October 28th at Harrisburg Area Community College. You can watch the video below.

Concerned students talk to Pennsylvania government

The Council of Higher Education of the Pennsylvania State Board of Education has scheduled a series of five regional public hearings to receive input from college students, recent graduates, parents, higher education officials and others regarding the affordability of post-secondary education in Pennsylvania. With costs to attend college continuing to escalate, combined with relatively flat federal, state and institutional financial aid and increasingly restricted public and private loan markets, the Council of Higher Education seeks to understand how these factors are impacting the ability of those wishing to attend college to afford postsecondary education without taking on worrisome debt burdens that must be repaid after graduation

Below is the testimony of Ashley Lovejoy, who is scheduled to testify today, October 29 at Community College of Allegheny County. She is a student at Edinboro University.

When I decided to give this testimony here today I did not want to be the voice for just myself, but for every individual across the United States who want to continue with a higher education, but can not because the cost is simply not in their budget, or they have to alter their dreams to adjust to college tuition.

When I first decided that I was going to attend college my parents were very excited. I would be the first member from my family to attend and graduate with a degree. Up until my junior year of high school I was going to be a lawyer, I wanted to make a difference in the world. It was after I traveled to Australia as foreign exchange student that my vision for life had changed. To change the world I had to start with the youth of today, they would be tomorrow’s future. When I told my parents that I was no longer going to be attending college majoring in pre-law, instead I would be majoring in elementary/special education. The look of disappointment on my parents’ faces startled me. I was sure that they would be happy for me; I thought that they wanted all of my hopes and dreams to come true. The truth is they did and they still do. My father sat me down at the kitchen table and told me that if this is what I truly wanted in my life then they would support me. He just feared about how much debt that I would be in and the annual salary of a teacher. We would not be receiving any additional assistance for my funding for school because we fell into the middle class grey area. Even though my father was disabled from work and my mother had a full time job to try to make ends meet at home. I would be paying for my college through loans. At this point in my life I was not thinking about any of that and I thought that he was just crazy, by the time that I graduated I would be making more than $30,000.00 and it didn’t make a difference as long as I was happy with my career and changing the lives of children.

Now I sit here today $42,940.72 in debts with still another year of school until I graduate. I have had to take time off from school because I could not afford the difference that the cost of tuition to the amount I was receiving in loans. Now that I am a commuter and living off campus I am able to afford the tuition through loans. Yet, with the starting salary of a teacher averaging around $30,000.00 a year I fear of how I will be able to repay my student loans and pay for my everyday necessities to live. I see how I am struggling now to pay my bills, work a job, and maintain a 3.4 GPA full time in school. I fear that my parents were right about how much I would make as an educator and how it will affect the choices in my life. My dream was to teach in a special education classroom, preferably with autistic children or the severe emotional/behavioral disorder children. Then one day teach a third or fourth grade regular education classroom. Now I am looking at teaching in an inner city school where a district will agree to repay some or my entire student loans off for me. If I am unable to find a school in an inner city that offers this type of bonus, I have decided that I may have to set my dream aside and work in a psychiatric hospital for children. A job that would allow me to use my degree in, and pay back my loans and support myself with the cost of living in today’s economy.

I am just one person sharing my story with you, but there are thousands of students out there in the United States that share this same story. All we want to do is receive an affordable education to make a difference not only in our lives, but for the world, is that too much to ask?

Sakeena Kazmi, FL

This video from the recent USSA conference is courtesy of Sakeena Kazmi of Florida.

"Got Tuition?" visits Western Carolina University

"Got Tuition?" visited with students at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina today, where 75 students and parents signed the "Got Tuition" petition asking elected leaders to invest more federal resources in student aid, and 17 recorded videos discussing the issue of college affordability and discussing the positions of gubernatorial candidates Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory on this issue.

Whitley Barber, Western Carolina University


Kendra Bettis, Western Carolina University


Latoya Blackwell, Western Carolina University


Kim Browning


Aaron Camp, Western Carolina University


Deon Clark, Western Carolina University


Marley-Ann Cunningham, Western Carolina University


James Hinnant, Western Carolina University


Katie Johnson, Western Carolina University


Rachel Karriker, Western Carolina University


Danielle Lightner, Western Carolina University


Parker Millar, Western Carolina University


Shelby Schiller, Athens State Univ, GA


Sydny Small, Western Carolina University


Joshua Swayngim, Western Carolina University


Brandon Ward, Western Carolina University


Nancy Yang, Western Carolina University

"Got Tuition?" visits UNC-Asheville

"Got Tuition?" visited with students at the University of North Carolina at Asheville today, where 87 students and parents signed the "Got Tuition" petition asking elected leaders to invest more federal resources in student aid, and seven recorded videos discussing the issue of college affordability and discussing the positions of gubernatorial candidates Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory on this issue.

Michael Yakima, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Daniel Roberts, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Lauren Porricelli, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Emily Porter-Fyke, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Amidha Porter, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Ashley Jenk, University of North Carolina at Asheville


Joanna Boone, University of North Carolina at Asheville

"Got Tuition?" visits Warren Wilson College

"Got Tuition?" visited with students at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa today, where 13 students and others signed the "Got Tuition" petition asking elected leaders to invest more federal resources in student aid, and three students and others recorded videos discussing the issue of college affordability and discussing the positions of gubernatorial candidates Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory on this issue.

Hastings Blumer


Julienne Mulzac, Warren Wilson College


Courtney Oliphunt, Warren Wilson College