The calculus of College Costs: An interview with Mrs Mildred S. O'keffe, Director of FinAid at Suny Old Westbury

BY REGINALD FEVILIEN
How expensive is the cost of attending a four-year college, most would say it's very expensive. Both parents and teenagers face a tough question with pinpointing the equilibrium between a good education and what's affordable. According to Mark Kantrowitz, the publisher of FinAid.org, the average cost on a yearly basis-from food to books, flying back and forth home during the Holiday seasons is $50,000 at a public College, and more than $120,000 at a private one. Many times, parents find themselves gripped with a hard decision when their children choose a College that is desirable, but may be not affordable. Mark Kantrowitz stated, if you were to have a 1-year-old who will be going to College in the future, the bill for your son's or daughter's four-year education could be four times what it would be today. In an interview with Mrs. Mildred O'keffe the director of finical aid at SUNY Old Westbury who describes herself as "the product of Hofstra University, a mom, and a career woman with seventeen years of experience", she addressed the concerns that some students and parents.

Fevilien

How long have you been working for SUNY Old Westbury?

O'keffe

In SUNY Old Westbury, I have been here for six months.

Fevilien

Far from me the idea of being a noisy person, Have you worked in this field before?

O'keffe

Seventeen years in financial aid. I was most recently director at New York College of Health professions in Syosset. Prior to that, I was the senior associate director at Hofstra University…I have been in it for awhile.

Fevilien

I am assuming you have been in this position for a while, and you have witnessed many changes in the college Industry. Have those changes been for the better or for the worse?

O'keffe

I would say half and half. Normally, it is just recently the government increased the maximum amount of student loans. That is a good thing. However, the cost of education also went up. Therefore, it is not even balanced out. We just received a notification that the Government is going to sign the "Cost of Reduction Act". The Pell Grant is currently $2155 per semester; they are going to increase it in 2012.

Fevilien

How do you view the cost of higher Education ten years from now? Do you think it has the propensity to increase tremendously to the extent it will be a lot harder for the middle class to send their kids to College?

O'keffe

I mean I'm looking when I went to school. I came from less than middle class, and I went to a private school, and my parents could afford to send me to a private school with me borrowing the NDSL which is now called the Perkins Loans. I was able to afford room and board with less than middle class. Now there is no way if my child had to go to College and they would not qualify for anything. And I am certainly not wealthy. So, you know, either you have to be extremely low income to qualify for all the grants, or you are wealthy enough to be able to pay for everything.

Fevilien

What about a family with an income of $80,000 living in New York. Are they considered rich by the government standard?

O'keffe

They would not qualify for grants. The government has a formula they apply. It is a federal methodology formula. Based on that, they determine what the federal contribution is. I have seen instances where parents with this type of income, and they are not qualified for anything. To me the cost of education is probably going to increase more, and it is going to be harder for those in the middle to be able to find their way through without the assistance of aid.

Fevilien

Do you have any data on the percentage of SUNY Old Westbury students who apply for financial aid? (From 50 to 75 %)

O'keffe

According to the data of 06/2007, we processed a total $21,497,112 in Aid. The number of recipient was 2,558 students. Now, I have to remind you that the enrollment for 2006-07 was 3,409 students. So, out of 3,409 enrolled students, 2,558 received financial aid. That is 75% right there. And then, the actual percentage package is also 75%.So, at SUNY we are rather different than a private School. The fact of the matter is most of student population does receive aid.

Fevilien

How many of them who rely on student loans to finance their education?

O'keffe

It has to be very few. I have to tell you that SUNY is incredibly affordable. The point of the matter is if you qualify for TAP and Pell Grants, and you don't live in the dome, your tuition is paid. I would say it is a small percentage that does take loans. They probably use the loans mainly to cover rooms and boards.

Fevilien

From your own experience, what one of the things that drive tuition costs?

O'keffe

From my past experience-not at SUNY, obviously I have not been here long enough to observe that- they usually raise tuition in private institutions anywhere from 3 to 5%. It is probably because the cost of living is increasing, and they raise everything accordingly.

Fevilien

Do you any advice you would like to share with our readers specifically SUNY Old Westbury Students?

O'keffe

Well, there is a wealth of information out there, if students know where to go, there is a scholarship search organ out there. It is www.fastweb.com. If you do not qualify for financial aid, you can always visit this website to see if anything applies to you. This is the world of information age. Go online; you can also use the Google search engine for both scholarship and financial Aid.