I don’t think it’s going to make SUNYs less attractive for those seriously considering them.
My oldest is in 10th grade, so a lot could change still (as far as her goals) before she is applying, however, so far the new scholarship looks positive for her.
The Presidential (please, correct me if I’m wrong) is competitive. You need the stats to be considered, but still need to write essays/be interviewed, etc. right?
Basically this scholarship is automatic if your income is under the threshold and you are at 15 credits… so basically my daughter can apply knowing that going in she will at least get the excelsior. That’s a positive for her. Now, the benefit to getting a different scholarship that may not stack but may replace the excelsior (such as Presidential) would be that she will know she can move outside of NY within 4 years after graduation without paying it back if she chooses. Additionally, we wouldn’t have to worry about the logistics of figuring things out if a miracle happened and our income level went just above the threshold.
There may be some kids who view it differently but so far, that’s how my daughter and I have been seeing it.