Kelsi Beeman

12345 N. 6789 Rd,

Dewey, Ok 74029

President Donald J. Trump

1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20500

March 15, 2019

Dear Donald Trump,

Why does financial aid only apply to lower-class citizens and leave out the middle-class
citizens? Higher education is getting more and more expensive as time goes on; making
it almost impossible for an average middle-class citizen to go to college without taking
out any loans. According to Goldrick-Rab, the households with the lowest income,
specifically in the bottom 25 percent, benefit the most from receiving the greatest
amount of aid. While middle-class citizens are stuck in the gap between qualifying for
financial aid and not wealthy enough to attend college with no worries of having to pay
thousands of dollars. Have you considered changing financial aid requirements to help
middle-class citizens as well? If not, I hope my reasoning for why this is such a big issue
will help change your mind.

College is a very important part of life. For graduating seniors, college is the perfect
place to start learning how to live without parents and decide what career is the right
choice. College is also important for adults who decide they want to go back and further
their education even more. Going to college should be fun and exciting for everyone,
however, it mainly causes everyone stress and worries about how much it is going to
cost. “​College completion, especially without debt, pays a huge role in boosting lifetime
income and productivity” (Goldrick-Rab). Everyone, including middle-class citizens,
should have the chance to be successful. Having to pay thousands of dollars right out of
high school is just unrealistic.

Why are the expenses of college only a problem for middle-class citizens you might
ask? Well, the price of college is too expensive for most people to afford. However,
many lower-class citizens qualify for financial aid and are provided with money to help
cover the costs. Whereas “many lower-middle class families fall into a trap — their
families make far less than what college prices demand, but too much to qualify for a
Pell Grant”(Goldrick-Rab). In other words, middle-class citizens are stuck in a tough
spot.
Many people might suggest taking out student loans to help with the cost of college, but
that would only be a temporary solution and would also bring about problems in the
future. Zhao states that in the year 2016, around 70 percent of the students graduating
already had a debt of $37,172 per student. Often people also point out that going to
college is not required to have a good career, which is true. However, “financially, those
with college degrees ​make 60-80 percent more over their lifetimes​ than those with just a
high school diploma” Zhao states. Nobody should have to settle for less in life because
of the outrageous expenses of college and being falsely accused of having enough
money to pay for it without any help.

I can personally relate to this issue as my family is considered middle-class. Although

my parents go to work every day and make decent money, they have to use that money
to pay bills and buy food for their three kids still living at home. Farrington worded it
perfectly when he explained that middle-class citizens are too poor for college, but too
rich for financial aid. I understand that there are many other ways to save money when
going to college. For example, attending a community college for the first two years
would save some money, however, even two-year college expenses are rising. There
are also many scholarships to apply for as well. But, “the average student will only win
$1,000-$5,000 with a lot of dedication and effort”(Eneriz).​ ​Personally, I do not have time
to fill out every scholarship available. I am balancing high school, two online college
classes, work, and sports. While I thank you for the available scholarships, I am hoping
for more financial aid available to middle-class citizens in the future.

Have I changed your view on this issue? After reading the information I provided, I hope
you will consider taking steps towards expanding financial aid to help more than just the
lower-class citizens. Ensuring that more Americans complete college with less
debt — or better yet, with none — must become a national priority Farrington states. If
you still disagree with the idea of providing middle class citizens with financial help, I
hope you will get back to me and possibly present your reasoning. Thank you for taking
the time out of your busy schedule to read my letter.

Sincerely,

Kelsi Beeman
 Works Cited

Eneriz, Ashley. “How Much Can a Student Win from Scholarships?” ​Investopedia​,
Investopedia, 12 Mar. 2019,
www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/121015/how-much-can-students-realist
ically-get-scholarships.asp​.

Farrington, Robert. “Too Poor For College, Too Rich For Financial Aid.” ​Forbes,​ Forbes
Magazine, 19 June 2014,
www.forbes.com/sites/robertfarrington/2014/06/17/too-poor-for-college-too-rich-for-finan
cial-aid/#594798856922​.

Goldrick-Rab, Sara, and Biden Forum Editors. “We Can't Afford to Price Middle-Class
Families out of College.” ​Biden Forum​, Biden Forum, 14 Nov. 2018,
bidenforum.org/we-cant-afford-to-price-middle-class-families-out-of-college-9c6e7e7874
52.

Zhao, Emmeline. “Families Struggle to Afford College.” ​RealClearPolitics,​ 16 June

2016,
www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2016/06/16/families_struggle_to_afford_college.html​.