Tuesday
December 2, 2008
Advertisement
News, Views and Careers for All of Higher Education
Jan. 26, 2006
Why We Need the SMART Program
For the first 20 years of my adult life I served on research universities’ faculties, worked with medical students, and wrote peer-reviewed papers. As a medical doctor, a scientist, and a professor, I had enormous pride in the strength of America’s scientific establishment. The United States trains the world’s best scientists, runs the best research universities, and attracts the brightest minds from all over the world. Year after year, we take the lion’s share of Nobel Prizes.
Related stories
I proposed the SMART Grant Program to make sure that we retain our global leadership in the sciences. The program will provide grants up to $4,000 on top of Pell Grants (a total of $8,050 in assistance per year) to help bright, hard-working, full time students of modest means pursue degrees in math, science, and strategic foreign languages. Between now and 2010, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that almost 600,000 students will benefit from the program. These students, I am sure, will go on to teach at our leading research universities, run our top medical research labs, and administer our national science establishment. For them, the program will help a lot: at most land grant universities, in-state students receiving the maximum Pell Grant and a SMART Grant will pay no tuition for their last two years of college. Much of the money to finance SMART Grants comes from revisions to student loan formulas that ask private banks to accept reduced profits.
The SMART Grant program will also help America’s research universities retain their global preeminence. Today, India and China together graduate more than twice as many engineers as the United States. Both nations will continue to increase their ranks of scientists and engineers rapidly in the coming years. Meanwhile, many American employers have a difficult time finding qualified scientists and engineers. Since 85 percent of growth in U.S. income comes from technological change, we need to do everything we can to encourage our best and brightest to enter key scientific fields.
I designed the program with the needs of students and research universities in mind. College presidents, families, and students told me that financial pressures turned many bright students away from pursuing math, science, engineering, and languages. Friends of mine like James Wingate, the president of LeMoyne-OwenCollege, and Gordon Gee, chancellor of Vanderbilt University, knew about the program from its origins and joined me in praising SMART Grants after the Senate passed the legislation.
I know that some college officials have expressed doubts about the way the program shifts away from the traditional practice of awarding federal aid to undergraduates based primarily on economic need rather than merit. But while I believe that the federal government should provide generous financial assistance to students with a wide range of abilities, I see no reason to apologize for creating a program targeted towards the very type of bright, motivated students nearly all colleges seek to recruit. I’m shocked that some of SMART Grants’ critics appear to believe that low-income students can’t earn good grades. While they use the same financial eligibility criteria, the SMART and Pell Grant programs will remain distinct; one won’t impact the other. The program also limits itself to full time students because they pay the most tuition and have the greatest financial need. Although fiscal considerations will play a role in future action, I am open to proposals that would expand SMART Grants to cover needy part-time students who meet similar academic criteria.
I helped create SMART Grants to help bright students from all backgrounds to learn the skills most vital to our country. The future of our nation’s global leadership depends on America’s ability to produce more graduates with degrees in science and engineering. Once they understand it, I believe that America’s great colleges and universities will welcome the SMART Grant program with open arms.
Want it on paper? Print this page.
Know someone who’d be interested? Forward this story.
Want to stay informed? Sign up for free daily news e-mail.
Advertisement
Comments
Certainly education in the USA has been suffering, continues to suffer, from public disinterest and the shift to consumerism. Consumer/commercial culture focuses on the minimally adequate for the least cost. That’s not a ticket to excellence in education; rather, the opposite. Congressional and presidential “leadership” has offered shockingly little to counter that trend. This proposal might be an exception. Unfortunately, the person proposing it is short on trustworthiness. In fact, his actions have been centerstage in undermining trust in the political process in this country. The combination of arrogance and ignorance is breathtaking.
Ezra Gilgh, at 8:50 am EST on January 26, 2006
False Logic.
This comment is a Fallacy of Causation if the ever was. Sounds like the Fallacy the Mechanistic Cause (discussed by D. H. Fischer in Historian’s Fallacies p.179-181) and is certainly a false analogy. Charity to the poor does not cause the increase of unwed mothers alone and is not comparable to grants to professors in any realisitic way. No doubt someone is trying to flout their “superior” morality. Too bad. False parallels do not score points.
John F. DeFelice, Assistant Professor of History at University of Maine at Presque Isle, at 10:45 am EST on January 26, 2006
Why We Need SMART Grants
Finally, someone (Senator Bill Frist and his staff) have created an educational plan to address the dire need for technical and scientific traing for our youth; a program with reasonable requirements and standards. Finally, they have focused on a realistic plan to train students in fields that do not necessarily require a college degree but do require technical skills and aptitudes. Other countries have left us far behind in math, science, and technical capabilities as we have force fed our youth with a required dose of curriculum that never prepared themfor life skills and productive employment.
Judy C. Davis, at 5:10 pm EST on January 29, 2006
Moral superiority
Just a quick response to the arrogant statement by John DeFelice implying that I feel “moral superiority” over unwed mothers. Mr. DeFelice, I was born and raised as one of nine children in the housing projects of South Philadelphia. We were on welfare for quite a few years. Two of my sisters had children out of wedlock as a means, they thought, to escape the poverty we faced every single day.
I personally lived through the effects of poverty and the welfare sytem on my own family. I certainly do not need the likes of YOU commenting on my personal morality! If you think government welfare programs have not exacerbated the dissolution of the American family, I question what country you’ve lived in for the past thirty years or so!
feudi pandola, at 9:05 am EST on February 3, 2006
SMART Grant
I am a 22 year old student in Virginia. In only a month I will be graduating with 4 associate degree’s from Virginia Highlands Community College; with a Cum. GPA of 3.92. I live with a family income of just around 20,000. It is not easy for me to realize my educational goals. Besides taking 20+ credits per semester, I work 40+ hours per week to cover my bills. This grant would mean the world to me. Because of my grades, I have guranteed an out-of-state waiver to a great university, and I have received some other scholarships, but this grant would allow me to graduate with my B.A&S completely debt free. This grant could change the course of my family tree- I no longer would be bound by debt and bills, but be free to prosper. I don’t believe I am alone in this situation; thousands of students are praying for an opportunity just like this.
Abram McConnellStudent and future success.
Abram McConnell, Student at Virginia Highlands Community College, at 10:00 pm EDT on April 16, 2006
Smart Grant
As a college guidance counselor at a high school, this year alone I’ve seen the disappointment in the faces of several student admitted to their first choice college (not a small accomplishment) when they learned they could not attend due to high tuition and lack of financial aid. The smart grant is a step in the right direction.
Lin Mullins, at 5:40 am EDT on April 26, 2006
Beautiful Idea, But Missing Something...
The SMART grant is a wonderful idea. However, the rules to it miss something important. The stipulation saying that the subject studied must be a major leaves many a student out. My area is Japanese, and in the state of North Carolina, there are no schools that offer it as a major. Many do offer the language, but as a minor, or as part of an Asian Studies degree, etc. Besides maybe Russian, which might be on par with Japanese, all of the other critical languages allowed are even less represented in NC colleges. A student wishing to study Yoruba or Dari would have even less luck finding either as a major. However, both can be found as minors...
Although a wonderful idea, the grant needs to be modified to fit the special needs of each state, and for North Carolina at least, that would mean allowing students enrolled in upper level language classes and language minors access to the grant also. As things are, very few language majors will be using this grant in North Carolina any time soon.
Jonathan Owens, UNC Charlotte, at 4:30 am EDT on July 10, 2006
Found a problem with the program (AP’s)
My daughter is about the begin her senior (fourth) year at UC Berkeley and, after initially being notified she would be receiving $4000 from the SMART Grant, just received email notifying her she no longer qualified. This being AFTER she had planned her finances and moved into an apartment near campus based in part on this funding.
Why was she suddenly considered inelligible? Because she had too many units due to her AP classes in high school and she is considered a FIFTH year student, even though she has attended only 3 years of instruction at Berkeley (or anywhere else), and the AP’s put her unit count too high (SMART guideline is third or fourth year). I find it unfortunate she is being, in essence, penalized $4000 for taking AP classes, which helped her get INTO the university of her choice in the first place, but took away the SMART Grant for having done so.
Note to high school students — if you qualify for and complete many AP’s, be prepared to be disqualified for the SMART Grant at some point.
Lori A. Dunn, at 7:20 pm EDT on August 10, 2006
I am an incoming 4th year at UC Berkeley and I’m running into the same problem as well. The Associate Director of Financial Aid(pmuha@berkeley.edu) has justified the choice to include AP units by claiming more 2nd years will be qualified than 4th years disqualified by this policy. Since there’s already a smaller grant specifically for 1st and 2nd years, and AP credits hardly directly translate into faster degree progress, I’m left questioning the competence of UC Berkeley’s financial aid office. Their policy is great for lower division undergrads who can play their cards right and bilk the system to get three straight years of a two-year grant. It’s not so great for both students set to surpass the unit threshold and get nothing their senior year, as well as the current 4th years left in the cold. I guess that’s what I get for taking extra classes to make sure I finish on time.
Jimmy Vu, at 7:45 pm EDT on August 14, 2006
Advertisement
Jobs Related to Why We Need the SMART Program
or search for jobs directly.
Assistant Professor of Spanish/Medieval
Miami University
Assistant Professor of Spanish, tenure-track, to begin August, 2009. Ph. D. in hand by August 17, 2009. The Department of ... see job
Social Work Program — Internship Supervisors/Instructors
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania invites applications for two Internship Supervisors see job
Assistant Professor/Associate Professor
Western Carolina University
Assistant or Associate Professor of Organizational Communication. The Department of Communication at Western Carolina ... see job
Microbiology Adjunct Faculty Pool
Howard Community College
HCC offers two courses related to Microbiology: * Fundamentals of Microbiology is a course designed with a strong emphasis ... see job
Tenure-Track, Assistant Professor in 18th-Century French Literature and Culture
University of Colorado
Posting Description: The French and Italian Department at the University of Colorado, Boulder is seeking ... see job
Faculty, Life/Health Sciences
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
The University of Minnesota is a premier employer and a talent magnet attracting leading faculty and staff from around the ... see job
Scientist
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
The University of Minnesota is a premier employer and a talent magnet attracting leading faculty and staff from around the ... see job
572 Accountancy
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Long Beach College of Business Administration Department of Accountancy Tenure-Track Faculty ... see job
Accountant II
Community College of Baltimore County
Job Responsibilities: Under the supervision of the Capital Finance Manager, the Sr. Accountant Specialist I ... see job
School of Mathematics Position; Tenured
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
The University of Minnesota is a premier employer and a talent magnet attracting leading faculty and staff from around the ... see job
Home
| Sign up | Log in
| About us
| Work for Us
| Press Releases
| Rights and permissions
| Contact us
| Advertise
| Partners
| RSS 
| Podcasts
| Links
| Privacy
| My Account
© Copyright 2008 Inside Higher Ed
SMART Grants
I commend Senator Frist for initiating the new SMART grants. As an education worker, I can tell you that the lack of even basic math skills is appalling at the postecondary level. Our students have problems with English, but many of them are totally inept when it comes to simple addition, subtraction, multiplication and division! And you can forget about fractions, algebra, or any of the higher maths.
We know one thing about government subsidies. They work! If we subsidize unwed pregnancies, we get MORE unwed pregnant women. If subsidy math and science education, we will get more students with skills in these disciplines. SMART grants are, well, smart thinking from a political class that does not often exhibit that trait.
feudi pandola, at 8:05 am EST on January 26, 2006