88 parents and 2 students attended a college financial aid seminar organized by College and Career Center director Joan Batcheller on Wednesday, February 24.
The night focused on the intricacies of signing up for financial aid when applying to college. Batcheller covered the process for applying for student loans and scholarships. Batcheller said, “[The seminar] was so kids can have a realistic list of colleges. Kids want to go to schools that their parents can afford.”
According to the United States Department of Education’s website, the government provides about 100 billion dollars to college students who need tuition assistance. Since 2007, around 66% of students receive aid annually, which usually amounts to around $7,000 per student.
Batcheller warned parents about financing too much of college expenses. “For them to take the heavy student loans, it isn’t smart. So when they are building their college lists, you want them to have a list that they can afford,” she explained.
Mary Morrison, a former scholarship manager who now works as a Financial Literacy instructor at Stanford University, spoke at the event. She has 23 years of experience and has been giving seminars like this one for 22 years. Morrison said, “This is information that everyone needs to have.”
Batcheller invited Morrison to speak. “I learned that she had spoken at Las Lomas, and I heard that she was dynamic and she was great,” she said.
Over the course of 90 minutes, Morrison covered all aspects of student loans, parental aid, and general college expenses. While this is a fairly grim subject for most, Morrison said, “She [Batcheller] knows that this is part of what people and parents need to know to decide where their child is going to go to college, and you don’t go to college for nothing.”
