[nfbmi-talk] Board Correspondence college policy

Fred Wurtzel f.wurtzel at att.net
Tue Sep 13 03:21:11 UTC 2011


Hi,

Thanks.

Warm Regards,

Fred

-----Original Message-----
From: nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
On Behalf Of joe harcz Comcast
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2011 9:33 PM
To: NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List
Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Board Correspondence college policy

Well done!!

Best,

Joe
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Elizabeth" <lizmohnke at hotmail.com>
To: "larry Posont" <President.nfb.mi at gmail.com>; "JOHN SCOTT" 
<jcscot at sbcglobal.net>; <laschuck at juno.com>
Cc: <LuzenskiS at michigan.gov>
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2011 9:24 PM
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Board Correspondence college policy


> Dear Commission Board,
>
> They say that the only thing constant in life is change, but in most 
> cases,
> it is not uncommon for us to resist change. Therefore, I greatly 
> appreciate
> the work you are doing to forge a path of change within an agency that 
> seems
> to be resistant to change. Specifically, I greatly appreciate the fact 
> that
> you are willing to uphold a decision made by the previous Commission Board
> by taking the time to review the college policy after a year of its
> adoption. I commend you for keeping this promise to ensure students 
> receive
> the best possible services from the Michigan Commission for the blind.
>
> Since staff administrators took a considerable amount of time to receive
> input from students and consumers, we had high hopes that the agency would
> keep the promises it made during the formation process. However, we feel 
> let
> down by the agency, as it does not appear as though they have kept these
> promises. We are particularly disappointed with the misuse of the new
> financial needs form. I have attached a copy of this form for your
> convenience.
>
> Throughout the formulation process, students and consumers were promised
> that the new financial needs form would not create a means test for 
> college
> students. We were also promised that the parent's assets would not be used
> to determine how much a student could contribute to the cost of the 
> student's
> education. And finally, we were promised that students would not be asked 
> to
> financially participate in the cost of receiving services from the 
> Michigan
> Commission for the Blind if they received Social Security benefits 
> including
> Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability 
> Insurance
> (SSDI). However, it seems as though the new financial needs form they have
> chosen to use breaks all of these promises.
>
> First, it asks the college to list all financial resources available to 
> the
> student. These resources include the Expected Family Contribution, Pell
> grants, other grants and scholarships, need based loans, and work study
> programs. In most cases, the Expected Family Contribution is based on the
> financial resources of the parents along with the financial resources of 
> the
> student. Since most blind students cannot afford to pay the Expected 
> Family
> Contribution on their own, they most likely will need to turn to their
> parents to provide them with this financial resource that the Michigan
> Commission for the Blind will not provide.
>
> The form then asks the college to add all of these financial resources
> together, and then subtract the amount it will cost for the student to
> attend the college or university. The form calls this figure the student's
> unmet need. It appears as though this figure is used by the Michigan
> Commission for the Blind to determine how much financial assistance they
> will give to a student.
>
> If room and board is provided by the college or university, the form 
> states
> that it is important for this to be indicated on the form as it helps the
> Michigan Commission for the Blind to "properly plan" services with 
> students
> who receive Social Security benefits. Although it does not directly state
> this on the form, it would appear as though the Michigan Commission for 
> the
> Blind is looking to use the student's Social Security benefits to help pay
> for room and board. Asking students to use their Social Security benefits 
> to
> pay for rehabilitation services is in violation of the Rehabilitation Act.
>
> I understand this may sound rather confusing, but in the end, it seems as
> though the use of this new form only hurts the student. If you notice, the
> agency is asking the college to provide them with this information, and 
> not
> the student. If the college or university fails to submit this form by a
> specific deadline, the student will not receive any financial assistance
> from the Michigan Commission for the Blind. This means that the student is
> punished by actions that are no longer within their control. I do not
> believe this practice serves the best interest of the student, and I call
> upon you to continue to uphold the promise you have made to blind students
> by eliminating the use of this new financial needs form.
>
> Sincerely,
> Elizabeth Mohnke
> President, Michigan Association of Blind Students
>
>
>
>
> I understand all of this may sound confusing, but there is a rather simple
> solution to this problem. As the Commission Board, you can continue to
> uphold your promise to college students by eliminating this unnecessary 
> form
> from the college policy. In the end, it seems as though this form only 
> hurts
> the student as it is the responsibility of the college or university to 
> fill
> out this form. If the college or university fails to return the form to 
> the
> Michigan Commission for the Blind by a specific deadline, the student will
> not receive any financial assistance for that particular semester. In 
> short,
> the student is punished for not doing something that is beyond their
> control. I do not believe this serves the best interests of college
> students, and I ask you to
>
>


----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----


> _______________________________________________
> nfbmi-talk mailing list
> nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> nfbmi-talk:
>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org/joeharcz%40comcast.n
et
> 


_______________________________________________
nfbmi-talk mailing list
nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
nfbmi-talk:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbmi-talk_nfbnet.org/f.wurtzel%40att.net





More information about the NFBMI-Talk mailing list