Students may see shift in federal financial aid - Megan Thobe, Miami Student

Although the election results brought back the same president and a still-divided Congress, upcoming changes to the federal budget may affect the way college students finance their education. The American Opportunity Tax Credit, which gives families with college students up to $2,500 of tax credits, may not be available in the 2013 fiscal year. The tax credit is set to expire, but President Barack Obama has requested a permanent extension. According to Brent Shock, the director of Student Financial Assistance at Miami University, if this tax credit is not extended, many Miami students, especially those from middle class families, will feel direct effects. Shock said he does not fully understand how cutting the tax credit might benefit the economy. “I don’t see much value in losing the Opportunity Tax Credit,” Shock said. George Davis, the chair of the economics department at Miami, also said the expiration would have a bigger effect on family finances than the economy as a whole. http://www.miamistudent.net/news/students-may-see-shift-in-federal-financial-aid-1.2955267#.UKaau4fAdwI