Older students transferring to Sacramento State could have easier access to financial aid if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger approves AB 2813. The bill would raise the age limit for the Cal Grant program to include students under the age of 28. Currently, only students under the age of 24 are eligible for Cal Grants.

The supporters of this bill hope it will help make higher education more accessible to older students who have taken time off from college to work or students who need to work while they attend college.

“Community college students have a difficult time paying for school, a situation that is exacerbated by the many obligations of older college students,” said Assemblymember Hector De La Torre (D-South Gate), one of the bill’s authors, in a press release.

Although they would not argue with AB 2813’s intentions, some might argue that the bill’s proposed increase would not be enough.

“I don’t think there should be any age limit at all,” said photography major Dick Hall, a 70-year-old student seeking his second bachelor’s degree from Sac State. He earned his first bachelor’s degree in Art Studio when he was 34.

Hall said many students come back to school after working or realizing they aren’t going anywhere in their careers and that these students still deserve financial aid.

“Age isn’t relative,” he said. “If you’re a student, why can’t you get financial aid?”

Sac State’s Office of Institutional Research could not provide The State Hornet with information regarding the average age of transfer students coming to Sac State, but the average age of students at American River College, a Sacramento community college, is 30.5 years old, according to ARC Transfer Center Coordinator Carol Reisner.

“Our students tend to be older,” Reisner said, adding that an increase in the Cal Grant age cap proposed by this bill would have a huge impact on ARC students.

Under AB 2813, the number of Cal Grant entitlements would also be increased to 45,000 per year from 22,500, according to a press release from the chancellor’s office and the California State Students Association. Supporters of this bill say that this increase in the quantity of awards would be vital for many.

“With the recent federal cuts to student aid, it’s an important time to strengthen the Cal Grant program,” CSSA Chair Jennifer Reimer said in a press release from De La Torre’s office.

“This bill will make sure that more students have access to the financial aid that they need,” she said.

The Cal Grant program was adopted in 2000 and received over 135,000 applicants last year, according to the chancellor’s office and a CSSA press release.

There are three types of Cal Grants: Cal Grants A, B and C. Cal Grant A provides as much as the full cost of tuition any time a student is working toward a bachelor’s degree. Cal Grant B provides help for living expenses and books, but only for the recipient’s freshman year. Cal Grant C provides assistance for students attending occupational or career colleges.

These awards are available to first-year college freshmen who attend college within one year of graduating high school or earning their GEDs. They are also available to transfer students attending a four-year university for the first time, according to the California Student Aid Commission’s Cal Grant website (www.calgrants.org).

Cody Kitaura can be reached at [email protected]