Miranda Mueller, freshman in LAS, received enough financial aid to get through this year without worry. But most of Mueller’s aid came from private grants. She said she still feels the financial disparity between students, especially with her friends, on the opposite sides of the financial scale.

Mueller is just one of over 4,000 students at the University who receives a Pell grant. She and other students could expect an increase in their Pell grants for the 2008-2009 school year.

Both U.S. Senate Democrats and Republicans have proposed to increase the maximum Pell grant in two years.

“I think it would help,” Mueller said. “Honestly, I’d be up for a slight increase.” However, she said she is concerned about where the money will be coming from and hopes that taxes won’t increase.

Democrats have proposed a $300 increase, which adds up to a maximum grant of $4610, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Dan Mann, director of financial aid, said that President Bush also proposed an increase that would set the cap at $4,600 for the 2008 fiscal year budget and would continue to increase the maximum grant each year for the next five years by $200.

“Any increase in Pell funding helps our students,” Mann said.

Currently, according to the Federal Student Aid Web site, for the 2006-2007 academic year, the maximum Pell grant is capped at $4,050. The 2007-2008 academic year’s maximum is currently approved at $4,310.

Mann said that for the last three years, the maximum Pell grant has remained at $4,050. Meanwhile, tuition has been rising.

“The purchasing power, the value of (the Pell grant), has not increased accordingly to rising tuition rates,” Mann said.

Pell grants are a form of federal need-based aid. Mann said that the grant goes to the most needy students. Students who receive a Pell grant are undergraduates whose Estimated Family Contribution falls between zero and $3,850. This number is based on parents’ incomes and calculated through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, more commonly known as the FAFSA, filled out by the student that year. Grants are then dispersed each semester.

“In general, the Pell grant is the first thing we look at,” Mann said. “It’s the building block of the financial aid package.”

For some students like Mueller, the Pell grant, combined with private scholarships and grants, helps.

“It’s nice,” she said. “Me and my parents don’t have to worry about paying for school and can focus on other expenses.”