NGCSU students losing state $

ATLANTA - Thousands of Georgia college students - including a number of ROTC cadets at North Georiga College & State University - are having their scholarships cut in the middle of the school year to save the state $2 million.

Also included are more than 2,000 recipients of the Governor's Scholarship, a program that rewards Georgia's top students for their academic achievements. That reduction will save the state about $184,000, officials said.

Most of the other scholarship cuts target students who attend Georgia's private colleges.

``I was a bit upset about it,'' said Daniel McCollum, 19, a University of Georgia freshman from Demorest, after he got a letter notifying him he'd lose Governor's Scholarship money during finals week. ``That seemed like it was really odd timing.''

Payments to students receiving Governor's Scholarships will drop as much as 30 percent, from a maximum of $788 in the fall semester to $552 for the spring, according to Georgia Student Finance Commission officials.

McCollum had an A average in high school and scored a 1510 out of a possible 1600 on the SAT. Several of the nation's top schools showed interest in him, but he decided to stay in Georgia, where he could receive the Governor's Scholarship and the HOPE Scholarship.

``It will come out of our pocket,'' said Susan McCollum, Daniel's mother. ``It's not going to kill us one way or another. It's just the principle of the thing.''

The state had little choice but to reduce scholarships in the midst of $800 million in cutbacks across Georgia, said Bill Flook, director of the scholarship and grant programs for the Georgia Student Finance Commission.

It's unlikely lawmakers will be able to give money to scholarship recipients when the Legislature meets in January because so many state agencies are competing for funds, Flook said.

``I haven't gotten any indication that will happen this year,'' he said.

Other payments being cut include those from the Tuition Equalization Grant, which goes to more than 30,000 students of Georgia private colleges; supplements to about 300 students in the North Georgia College & State University ROTC program; and grants to about 40 children of law enforcement officers, firefighters and prison guards who were disabled or killed in the line of duty.

Private college students' grants will be reduced from $523 for the fall semester to $404 for the spring, saving the state about $1.5 million.