Rice University recently announced the launch of a new financial aid initiative called The Rice Investment. The goal of the move is to make higher education more accessible for potential and current students.

Beginning next fall, the private university in Houston will offer full tuition scholarships to families earning up to $130,000 per year, and at least half tuition scholarships for families earning between $130,000 and $200,000 per year. Families earning less than $65,000 will not only have the opportunity to receive a full scholarship to the university, but they will also be given grant aid to cover fees and room and board, according to a press release from Rice’s Office of Public Affairs.

“We’re really excited,” said Yvonne Romero da Silva, Rice University’s vice president of enrollment. “It was really an effort to help support low-income students and middle-income families and make the cost of education more affordable.”

The school’s admissions process and criteria, however, will not be affected by the program, said Romero da Silva. The school is expecting a rise in university interest and enrollment applications, but that isn’t the point, Romero da Silva said.

Laura Angle | Digital Design Editor

“The whole point is that those who are applying and those who are admitted from those income ranges are going to be supported in a way that we hope can make education more affordable,” she said.

Nick Jerge, a sophomore mathematics and political science dual major at Rice, said the news of the financial program created a lot of buzz on campus. He said he texted his mom to check the Rice Thresher, the school’s campus newspaper, to see the announcement.

“I’m not quite so sure she appreciated being woken up in the middle of the night to see the news, but it seemed like a big enough deal to warrant sending her a message,” he said.

The announcement has put the spotlight on the university, according to Doug Miller, the director of news and media relations at the university. Miller said the reaction has been “overwhelming” and that people are contacting the school from all over the world asking about the plan.

The Rice Investment is being seen as a game changer for higher education institutions across the country. Not only is it expected to pave way to a college admissions process that eliminates a fear of student debt — a major source of stress among students and their families — but it also aims to promote socioeconomic diversity on campus.

“Colleges are struggling to make sure every corner of society can access higher education, and this is one less roadblock for lower- and middle-income students who are hoping to earn a Rice degree,” Jerge said.

Published on October 17, 2018 at 11:39 pm