Students speculate on tying HOPE to SATs

Most in-state students at Tech all have a common bond in that they receive the HOPE scholarship to support their tuition costs.

In the constant struggle to keep the scholarship, however, students become well aware of its requirements. Currently, HOPE awards Georgia residents with a 3.0 GPA (a B average) at the completion of high school full tuition at any in-state public college or university. Students can also earn up to $3,000 a year for tuition at any private in-state university.

However, last week Republican Governor Sonny Perdue proposed the development of a committee to research the future of HOPE and possibly consider adding a minimum SAT score to the existing 3.0 GPA requirement.

Not only would this option significantly reduce the number of students the program provides for, but, according to Perdue, would create an incentive to do well on the SAT, helping Georgia rise from its 50th place national ranking when it comes to standardized testing scores.

During the past school year, Georgia’s students averaged a 980 on the SAT-20 points below the 1000 level minimum that Perdue has suggested for HOPE qualification.

Other state scholarships do include SAT scores as part of their requirements.

For example, West Virginia’s PROMISE requires both a B average and a 21 on the ACT or 1000 on the SAT. Florida’s Bright Futures offers seniors with a 1270 SAT or 28 ACT a full scholarship to any in-state university and a partial award for 970 SAT or 20 ACT scores.

However, requiring a minimum SAT/ACT score often creates political controversy. These programs, along with several others throughout the nation, have been criticized for discriminating against minorities, since the majority of recipients are white.

This is evidenced in Georgia’s statistics last year. Caucasian students combined scored 1035, while African-Americans only scored an average of 852.

In addition, if the 1000 minimum had been imposed at the start of the 2000 school year, approximately 8,100 of 20,000 HOPE recipients would not have met the requirements.

Two-thirds of that number- about 5,000 students-would have been black.

“A lot of people feel that the HOPE scholarship is already biased towards minorities,” said Robert Brooks, a Management senior. “They’re also financially worse off, and the ones that need the scholarship most,” he added.

However, both the research commission and Perdue agree that HOPE should not be turned into a need-based scholarship, especially since that would stain Georgia’s continuous No. 1 ranking in the academic-based student financial aid (a list compiled by the National Association of State Student Grant and Aid Programs) field.

But other minorities besides African-Americans may also be affected by the minimum SAT.

For example, for Tech’s large international population, language barriers may result in lower test scores as well.

Steven Lee, a second year Computer Engineering major, said, “HOPE has always been 3.0. Foreign students always do badly on the verbal, so it’ll be a disadvantage to us.” Why do minorities score lower on standardized tests? Critics deny that the test is culturally biased, but suggest that financial background may determine whether students can afford to take prep courses.

Financial background may also affect a student’s motivation and incentive as well, both key factors in this debate.

Perdue found that 10 freshmen receiving HOPE in 2000 did have a 3.0 GPA, but scored under 500 on the SAT.

These students knew that despite their SAT score, they would still be able to attend a local college, with full tuition provided, based on their high school GPA.

This exposes a very different aspect of the Georgia school system. How many teachers provide a slight grade modification, or “inflation,” to allow students to attain the mandatory GPA for HOPE?

Fortunately, the quality of admissions at Tech may cushion the impact of Perdue’s proposa, should it to go into effect.

Deborah Smith, Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment, agreed that Tech’s high SAT requirement would not cause many disruptions in admission standards.

However, she said, “SAT scores used in a vacuum to determine access to a program is not appropriate.”

“Making a decision of admission based entirely on the SATs, even the College Board agrees, is the wrong way to approach the decision,” she said.

From a financial aid perspective, there may also be cause for concern. Marie Mons, Director of Financial Aid, said that she is “concerned about how students finance their education.”

With the lack of appropriate funds that students might receive with the SAT requirement, they might choose not to attend Tech.

“There will be some belt-tightening,” stated Mons, “not a complete castration.”

Student opinion on the proposal also varies, though the difficult academic atmosphere of Tech cause many students to agree with the more stringent criteria for the scholarship.

Dave Studstill, an Industrial Engineering junior, said, “It’s a good idea. It gets people to study more, since after all, if you have a high GPA, that can’t be all.”

Janet Moody, a third year Management major, agreed. “As long as they’re giving money,” she said, “they can put whatever stipulations they want on it.”

Other students offer other suggestions besides a minimum SAT. One suggestion is that the spending on SAT programs could be monitored at the high school level, or a cut on some of the other avenues the lottery assets are spent on could maintain the HOPE scholarship.

For example, “We could increase the GPA required, but not include the SAT scores,” said Thuy Trinh Dang, a third-year Biochemistry major.

Budget concerns may also underlie the proposal to base HOPE on SATs. According to statistics, during the first year of HOPE’s creation in 1993 by former Governor Roy Barnes, 42,807 students were awarded a total of $21.4 million.

Now, with the scholarship as an incentive, more students work harder to maintain the crucial 3.0 average throughout high school.

As a result, during this past 2002-2003 school year, the number of students receiving HOPE has jumped to 211,938, with $360.7 million awarded in total.

The cost of the students attending college with HOPE grows larger with each year, and the profits sold from lottery tickets may eventually be unable to provide all students having a 3.0 GPA with the full scholarship.