sax

Schreyers continues to boost their endowment for the 1600 kids in the honors college. Penn State Live - Merrill Lynch gives $1 million for Schreyer Honors College scholarships

SpringfieldMom

Wow, it makes so much sense to throw more money at smart kids, the majority of which come from priviledged backgrounds whose parents can afford the full cost to attend PSU. At the same time, enrollment of kids coming from lower income households is decreasing. In addition, those from lower income backgrounds are borrowing more and more money putting themselves in more debt at graduation. Doesn't it make more sense to put some more scholarship $$$ towards the latter group?

(p.s. I am one of those who can afford the full cost for my D to attend PSU.)

PSU sees fewer low income students - The Daily Collegian Online

Penn State Live - Undergraduate student aid remains challenging for students from all backgrounds

G Dad

"Consideration for the Merrill Lynch Honors College Scholarships will be given to students in the college who have earned a high school grade point average of 3.5 or higher, and who contribute to the ethnic or cultural diversity of the student body."

Looks like they are trying to at least attract more URMs to Schreyers. May not get at the ‘lower income’ group, because they could be any color, but this does help the diversity.

toneranger

Merrill Lynch has strong ties to Schreyer - the founder of the college, William Schreyer, was a past Chairman/CEO of Merrill so I can see why the money keeps coming in from that company.
I agree that attracting lower income folks should be a priority. Financial aid at PSU is horrible. But I also don't think it makes sense to reduce funding or stop fund raising for Schreyer. This program attracts top students that would normally go elsewhere - and this eventually this benefits the entire school. I like the idea of offering bigger scholarships to low income kids though. For the "wealthy" folks, the Schreyer scholarships are not that big ($3500) compared to the cash honors programs like Pitt hand out (plenty of full rides). It's all relative I guess...

sax

Springfieldmom: What makes you think the kids at Schreyers are priviledged and able to afford tuition without help? Do you have any data to back that up? Have you read some of the bio's of the students at Schreyers? I just never got that impression. Are you just making a broad generalization?

I think it's great that PSU can pull kids away from the IVY's and other top schools. It obviously helps the entire University or the honors program would not have any reason to exist. This is not an elitist group. Work hard and you can get into Schreyers junior year. It's there for anyone.

sax

Here is copy from Penn States website on endowments for the SHC and how they have helped the college in general


"All of Penn State has benefited from this transformation of our honors program. Today, the Schreyer Honors College enrolls 1,800 extraordinary undergraduates. These students raise the level and standards for all undergraduates, serving as leaders in the University's classrooms, laboratories, organizations, and extracurricular activities. Since 1997, Schreyer Scholars have earned 140 of the nation's most prestigious fellowships and awards, including 41 Fulbright awards, 30 Goldwater scholarships, and 44 National Science Foundation graduate fellowships, as well as a Churchill and a Rhodes scholarship.

All of our University's colleges have developed honors courses, which in turn have served as models for new courses and teaching techniques now employed across the University. The opportunity to work with some of the brightest students in the country has helped Penn State recruit top candidates to its faculty. The achievements of our honors students and the creation of innovative new educational models have enhanced Penn State's academic reputation and drawn national attention to the Schreyer Honors College." Direct quote from Penn State Website on Financial Support from outside of the college.