<p>Nancy Grant, I have personal experience with Harvard’s financial aid, and that of other colleges, and you are incorrect about the current situation. Harvard and other schools have made a commitment to provide full aid without loans, for those whose EFC’s qualify. Work study is $3400 this year. This student could earn that amount with a campus job.</p>
<p>Many schools do include expenses such as books and airplane fare in their aid. I know that Questbridge students receive this kind of help, too.</p>
<p>I am aware of the danger of child protective services for parents on the street. However, as a strategy for avoiding such intervention, living on the streets without using resources such as shelters is not a workable strategy for women and children, and I doubt anyone could keep it up for long. It is also possible that families are less vulnerable to harmful interventions when in a shelter, than while on the streets.</p>