Students Participate in TEG Student Advocacy Day at the State Capitol

(ABILENE, Texas)—On April 11, five Hardin-Simmons University students traveled to Austin to participate in Tuition Equalization Grant (TEG) Student Advocacy Day at the Texas State Capitol. TEG Student Advocacy Day provides students with an opportunity to lobby for their education funding and that of their peers. It also offers HSU’s young professionals the opportunity to network and practice being in a business atmosphere.

HSU students took a moment to visit with Senator Dawn Buckingham.

The TEG is available to students of private non-profit Texas colleges and universities who are Texas residents, have a minimum grade point average of 2.5, and exhibit financial need. In 2015, over $96 million in TEG funding helped provide financial assistance to more than 27,000 Texas students. This year, Texas legislators approved an increase in TEG, which will provide financial aid to more students across the state.

HSU is unique in that the school covers the cost of the TEG grant for many additional students at the university. According to Courtney Browning, Senior Financial Aid Specialist at HSU, “we were allocated $1,962,373 in TEG funding, which covered the full TEG grant for 583 students and a portion of the grant for an additional student.  We spent an additional $646,401 using HSU money to help an additional 276 students receive funding.  Overall 860 students in total were directly impacted by the Tuition Equalization Grant and HSU’s institutional equivalent.”

The increase in TEG funding voted on by Texas legislators will provide financial assistance to many more HSU students, as well as students around the state.

“Advocating for private, Christian higher education is important if we want to see HSU continue to thrive in the future.  The Tuition Equalization Grant and continued support from the state makes Hardin-Simmons a reality for many students.  My job in the Financial Aid office is to be a student advocate and to help connect students and families to resources that aid their investment in a college degree.  So, when the House of Representatives and Senate meet, we see it as our personal responsibility to make Hardin-Simmons, our world-changing students, and the unique value of private higher education known.  Seeing students realize their power and have their voices heard at the Capitol reminds me each trip why I choose to work here and motivates me to work harder on behalf of our HSU family,” says Browning.

TEG constituent Elizabeth Bygel says, “the TEG has played a big role in helping make Hardin-Simmons affordable for me. I appreciate the school allowing me to go to Austin to thank government officials for aiding private university students. Within government, people can tend to be negative, but I think it’s important to thank our officials and spread positivity.”

Students hold their HSU guns up with Representative Stan Lambert.

Throughout the day, the students met with many influential individuals, including District 24 Senator Dawn Buckingham and District 71 Representative Stan Lambert. The group toured the capitol and had the opportunity to gift the senator and representative of their hometown HSU merchandise.

Included in the students’ many meetings was an informative session with President Ray Martinez and Vice President for Research and Policy Analysis Elizabeth Puthoff of Independent Colleges & Universities of Texas (ICUT). ICUT is a nonprofit association that represents 38 fully accredited private colleges and universities in Texas. Their goal is to further students’ education, address the financial needs of college students and their families, foster community-centric economic development, create relationships with businesses, and lobby for private education and education funding.