Sarah's Thoughts
Don’t Lower the GPA!
Our state legislature is considering a bill to lower the GPA needed to earn a HOPE Scholarship from a 3.0 to a 2.75. I hope this attempt at lowering expectations does not succeed for three reasons.
First, why should the state pay for a student to attend college when he has not shown he can succeed in high school? If a student is even minimally interested in his studies, earning a 3.0 GPA is not difficult. With grade inflation, such marks are barely above passing.
Second, there are already too many people going to college. I believe that colleges and universities should be for men and women who are interested in learning. Instead, the most apathetic teenager who cannot stand studying and sitting in a classroom is still expected to apply to college. Why allow that person to take up space in a classroom for four more years? I am not going to force Catherine to go to college. I hope that she will choose to attend college, as that time was a wonderful experience for me. She is growing up in a home with two parents who enjoy learning (I loved school … studying late at night, writing essays, final exams … loved it!), so I hope she develops a joy for knowledge whether she gets that through school or another one of life’s avenues.
Third, the state already spends enough money subsidizing higher education. Tuition at our state schools is quite low when you consider the actual cost. Lowering the GPA requirements would cost the state another $36 million, which may not be entirely covered by the lottery. Let’s stop lowering the expectations we hold for our students and instead reward those who have proven that they are serious about succeeding.
And, by the way, I would like to thank Senator Henry for giving a shout-out to my home state of Maryland:
“If this was Maryland or Delaware or some such place, I wouldn’t have any trouble saying, ‘yes, let’s stick with 3.0,’” Henry said. “But in Tennessee, exposure to college work is so rare and some knowledge of the great world is more and more necessary to people who want to get anywhere in life.”
Who knew that the Chesapeake Bay area held the standard for “exposure to college work”? Way to go, Terps and Fighting Blue Hens!
June 8th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
I agree with you completely. In fact I just posted comments on another site about it. This is an academic scholarship. Shouldn’t people be expected to earn it by getting good grades. A C+ average throughout high school hardly qualifies as being worthy to receive an academic scholarship. These things need to be earned and not given away.
I’m also glad to see I’m not the only one who loved school and tests, etc.
June 8th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
[...] Sarah Moore doesn’t think we need to lower the standards for the HOPE scholarship. Why? I’ll let her tell ya: [T]here are already too many people going to college. I believe that colleges and universities should be for men and women who are interested in learning. Instead, the most apathetic teenager who cannot stand studying and sitting in a classroom is still expected to apply to college. [...]
July 7th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
umm excuse me…have you seen the tuition costs for college these days?!?! im a college student myself and have been on the dean’s list EVERY semester but one in 3 years! that one semester made me lose my lottery because i didnt meet the criteria by .4! yes i said (point) . 4!!! so until you actually go through with college and have the lottery yourself dont even think about complaining about it!
July 7th, 2007 at 3:18 pm
Ashley,
Thanks for your comment. I have seen tuition costs these days and, at least at state schools, they aren’t very high considering the actual cost of running a university. Higher education is heavily subsidized.
I did “go through with college” and I graduated with a 3.78 GPA. I was on the Dean’s List every semester. So, I’m familiar with what it takes to maintain high grades in college. I think that missing the criteria by 0.4 sounds like you weren’t even close (there is a big difference between 3.3 and 3.7 when it comes to GPAs). If you knew the conditions for maintaining the scholarship when you started, I don’t see how you have any room to complain. The standard has to be set somewhere.
You think that only those people who have the lottery scholarship have the right to complain about it? What about the future employers of these graduates? Or the taxpayers who subsidize higher education? Or the teachers who are pressured into further grade inflation so that students can get/maintain the scholarship? I think there are many people with different interests who have a stake in the future of the lottery.
September 19th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
Listen up cockbite, the “state” has $300 million dollars in excess funds from the lottery. You’re saying that $300 million in excess can’t pay for $36 million in tuition, you must have failed your college calculus classes or something.
September 19th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Dear Bite Me,
I am aware of the surplus from the lottery funds and that this surplus may be used to pay the additional scholarship needed should the GPA be lowered … for now. The governor has gone on record stating that he may not support using the surplus for this purpose, though. Beyond that, you would quickly find, between the lowered GPA requirements and the already-disgusting grade inflation occurring in high schools, we would lose the surplus and be faced with a deficit.
Bite me, despite all of my hesitations, you have made me rethink my position. If lowering the GPA will allow more fine scholars such as yourself to get a college education, then count me in as a supporter! After all, you must be a star in your speech and communication classes to use such an effective persuasive technique as “Listen up cockbite” (there should be a comma between “up” and “cockbite”, by the way). And, to have “Bite Me” as your name? A sign of maturity and preparedness to handle a program of higher education, to be sure.
I got an “A” in Calculus.