Senator Anwar Joins Passage Of Legislation Supporting Thousands of CT College Students

Today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) joined the Senate’s passage of Senate Bill 5, “An Act Concerning Higher Education Affordability and Accountability.” This legislation is a top priority of Connecticut Senate Democrats and takes aim at college affordability by ensuring that the state’s Roberta B. Willis scholarship foundation which provides financial relief on a needs-basis for Connecticut students attending four-year colleges and universities in Connecticut, excluding community colleges, functions as intended.

“Connecticut’s colleges and universities are supporting countless students today, but growing costs mean students are looking for the best opportunities for them – which doesn’t always mean staying in Connecticut,” said Sen. Anwar. “This bill seeks to fix a program needing attention to ensure its maximum utilization by students, a shift that should support thousands of Connecticut students to stay in-state for higher education and possibly build careers and lives here.”

Currently, Roberta B. Willis Scholarships are on average between $4,500 and $5,200. These scholarships are intended to help incentivize Connecticut’s students to stay in-state in their pursuit of higher education.

A hallmark of the bill is the requirement for the Office of Higher Education to notify institutions by November 1 of each year of the amount of funds allocated to each institution for need-based grants for the following fiscal year. This means that institutions can notify students of their full aid package at the time of admission, which will help students weigh the benefits of enrolling in-state accurately.

With the future of federal funding for financial aid programs in question, this legislation seeks to invest in Connecticut students, schools and our workforce.

Currently, Connecticut’s investment into needs-based scholarships is among the lowest in the country. According to a NASSGAP survey, forty-three other states spend a greater percentage of state funding for higher education on student aid than Connecticut does. Connecticut also loses 40-percent of its young adults to colleges and universities in other states.

Over the last several years Democrat led legislation has expanded access to higher education through debt-free community college, Connecticut Automatic Admission Program (CAAP) and expanding access to lower interest CHESLA loans.