NJ STARS Saved
Like a criminal on death row, NJ STARS received a last-minute reprieve from the Governor. But there are a few "tweaks," like:
• Only the top 15% of high school graduating class is eligible (instead of the top 20 %).
• Students must complete what the State Higher Education Commission calls "a rigorous series of high school courses" (but who's to say what makes classes "rigorous"?)
• Students will take a college placement test and if they don't achieve the required placement test scores, they won't be eligible unless they take basic skills classes before they're admitted (on their own time and at their own expense).
There are other little "tweaks," including a dollar limit on the amount students receive in STARS II when they transfer to a four-year college to finish their bachelor's degree. You can check that out at www.njstars.net
So what's your feelings about the change? Better to make a few "tweaks" than to eliminate the program altogether? Or are these "tweaks" really significant and unfair?
• Only the top 15% of high school graduating class is eligible (instead of the top 20 %).
• Students must complete what the State Higher Education Commission calls "a rigorous series of high school courses" (but who's to say what makes classes "rigorous"?)
• Students will take a college placement test and if they don't achieve the required placement test scores, they won't be eligible unless they take basic skills classes before they're admitted (on their own time and at their own expense).
There are other little "tweaks," including a dollar limit on the amount students receive in STARS II when they transfer to a four-year college to finish their bachelor's degree. You can check that out at www.njstars.net
So what's your feelings about the change? Better to make a few "tweaks" than to eliminate the program altogether? Or are these "tweaks" really significant and unfair?