Legislature Passes Scholarship Hike

In the first substantial student aid funding increase in more than 10 years, the state legislature last week approved a $34 million appropriation for scholarships in fiscal year 1984.

Most Statehouse observers say that Gov. Michael S. Dukakis will sign the appropriation bill, which almost doubles aid funding by adding $15 million, by Friday. A spokesman for the Governor yesterday said only that Dukakis will take some type of action within the week.

State scholarships are available to any Massachusetts resident with financial need. Under the new funding, 36,000 students will receive scholarships next year, up 10,000 from current levels, said State Sen. Gerard D'Amico (D--Worcester), Chairman of the Senate education committee.

James S. Miller, associate director of financial aid for Harvard, said yesterday that it is too early to determine how much University students will receive. He noted recently that about 110 Harvard students received state scholarships this year, but said. "It could be really wonderful or it could just be a minor adjustment, depending on how the legislature determines the individual allocations."

The State Board of Regents will determine the allocations formula in May.

Educational lobbyists yesterday called the legislature's move a major break-through for funding higher education. "It took almost 20 years to get $19 million in state scholarships; now we've gone up another $15 million in one year," James B. King, associate v ice president for state and community relations, said yesterday.

The Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts also praised the legislature's action, but James A. True, the organization's vice president for government relations, said the new appropriation was only a first step. He added Massachusetts actually needs from $50 million to $150 million in total state scholarships to provide for all needy applicants. D'Amico added that about 75,000 applicants were denied aid this year.

Although Dukakis had asked for a scholarship increase of only $4 million in his proposed budget last month, he has repeatedly said he is committed to eventually raising the total funding to much higher levels. When he signs the bill this week, Dukakis will probably announce a promise to raise scholarship funds by at least $6 million for each of the next three years, one proponent who asked not to be identified said yesterday.

Because of the rising costs of tuition and federal cuts in financial aid, many legislators considered the scholarship increase an urgent move. However, an earlier proposal, which would have linked the appropriation to an increase in the cigarette tax failed.