USD Magazine, Winter 2001

ASSETS __oo=v _ o Stories by Susan Herold and Tim McKernan

A s spring approaches, the files begin piling up on USD financial aid counselors' desks, jammed with enough figures and decimal points and dollar signs to make even an accountant scream. le would be easy enough for chose who match the students with the money to get caught up in the dizzying, detail-driven world of college financial aid, where acronyms pepper the conver– sation (Did you gee your FAFSA in on time?) and time is measured in application deadlines. Bue inside each file the financial aid coun– selors know there is a student who dreams of a college education. Dreamers like Javier Marin, who was raised in a neighborhood where gun– shots and crack deals are as regular as the sun– rise, yet who refused to give up on his dream of a college degree even though his mother, a migrant worker, had no money to help him. In May, Marin will graduate USD with hon– ors, a tribute to his will and that of financial aid counselors, who worked with him over his col– lege career to put together a package of grants, loans and scholarships worth about $20,000 a year. "The resources are out there, you just have to continue to work to find chem, and gee yourself known with the financial aid office," says Marin, one of 660 students at USD who are the first in their family to attend a university. "This was the best decision I've ever made in my life - I've learned so much in these four years and changed myself for the better." Approximately 5,300 applications will pour into the USD Financial Aid Office this year from students seeking an array of grants, scholar– ships and loans to help them cover the cost of their education. While demand is always greater than che resources - two-thirds of USD's undergraduates depend on some form of finan– cial assistance - $68 million will be handed our this year to undergrad and graduate students. At first blush, the rhoughr of financing a col– lege education can be terrifying in an era when the cost of a degree can range from $40,000 for a public university to upwards of $150,000 at some private universities (USD's annual tuition

is $19,128). But the concept is a lot less fright– ening when it is approached with a sensible savings plan, combined with some legwork in rounding up grant, scholarship and loan applications. In fact, USD's director of financial aid notes chat students who take our loans to help gee chem through college graduate on average owing about $23,000 - about the price of a new car. "When you consider char the value of your degree goes up each year, in terms of earning power, it's one of the best investments you can make," says director Judith Lewis Logue. Her theory has proven accurate: USD graduates have one of the lowest default rates in the nation when it comes to repaying student loans, a testament to their earning power. USD students also are getting better at scour– ing the nation for scholarships, a growing com– ponent of college financial aid. This year, USD topped the $1 million mark in outside scholar– ships brought into the university by students. A decade ago, barely $200,000 in outside money came m. But it's the money that comes from USD and its donors that makes the key difference in get– ting kids like Javier Marin a college education. More than $29 million of the funds awarded chis year to USD students came from the university, endowed scholarships or donations. It is the key pool of money that financial aid counselors dip into to complete the financial aid packages offered to outstanding students who can't get to Alcala Park otherwise. Kari Griffiths, whose parents, Charlotte and Falk Nielsen, endowed a scholarship at USO 25 years ago, says the family's great joy is watch– ing the students they helped become elementary teachers, Peace Corps volunteers and entrepre– neurs. "Ir's so special to talk with them," she says of the students she meets ac an annual lunch where donors meet with the students who receive their scholarships. "They're such fun kids. I always feel like it's one big family chat we're lucky to be a part of."

Finding college financial aid requires some legwork and digging, but it's the people behind the scholarships, the students who never give up and the families that support them who are the real discoveries .

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