The Illinois Student Assistance Commission warns that uncertainty over state funding for tuition-assistance grants could jeopardize the academic success of thousands of low-income students.
Gov.Bruce Rauner signed a law last week for a stopgap budget to keep state government operating for six months.
The budget provides $151 million to cover grants made to students this spring through the Monetary Award Program, though it does not provide funding for grants for the upcoming school year.
A survey from the commission found more than 18,000 students could delay or not complete their degrees. The commission says the survey was conducted before the recent budget was approved and some students might have responded differently in light of the grants being fully-funded for the 2015-16 school year.
