By ALEXANDRA SMITH

Staff Writer

After initially proposing cuts to the Georgia Tuition Equalization Grant, the  House/Senate Budget Conference Committee reached an agreement to restore the grant  to 2013 levels. This means eligible students can expect  $700 from the GTEG in 2014.  

The revised budget was approved by the General Assembly and now goes to the Governor for signature. 

Piedmont College, under the leadership of President James Mellichamp, had many students contact their representatives to help urge the legislators to not pass this cut in the funding. 

Sophomore Presston Triguero said, “I feel like they were just pulling our leg. They need to just leave the funding alone unless they plan to raise it.” 

Mellichamp said that he didn’t want to see students deal with this tuition increase and then lose GTEG funding too. 

According to Mellichamp, the cost of health insurance for the college’s employees is increasing 38% for the 2014 fiscal year.  This increase in insurance costs, and some other factors are the cause for the tuition increase of about 3% for the upcoming academic year. 

Mellichamp said that he knows how important every dollar is to students and families of Piedmont College. 

“I know this funding is important to students, and it is important to me too,” said Mellichamp.

“The state has been chipping away at this grant for years now, and if we don’t fight for it, it will be gone all together.”