Norton to Hold College & Financial Aid Expo for D.C. Students Saturday (09/15/2010)

Norton to Hold College & Financial Aid Expo for D.C. Students Saturday

September 15, 2010

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Office of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) will host the 2010 College & Financial Aid Expo,Saturday, September 18, from11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the National Building Museum, 401 F Street NW. This year's expo will be both comprehensive and individualized, providing an opportunity for students and parents to meet one-on-one with college recruiters and federal and local services provides, as well as to receive additional assistance on the opportunities available to finance a college education during a recession. Because college is not all work, attractions that are also a part of college life will also be featured.

"With the cost of tuition and college-related expenses on the rise, it is increasingly difficult for students and parents to prepare and pay for a college education," said Norton. "Our expo will not only allow college-bound students to speak directly with admission counselors, but also to gain valuable information to help them finance their education."

Norton has made special efforts to increase college attendance in the District. In 1999, Norton's D.C. College Act became law, creating DC-TAG, a program that provides higher education opportunities for D.C. students equal to those available to other Americans, by granting up to $10,000 annually for in-state tuition at most public colleges, and up to $2,500 annually to attend private institutions in D.C. and the region. DC-TAG has doubled college attendance rates in D.C., now up to 60 percent, which is ten points above the national average, has served 14,458 D.C. students over the last decade, and provided $219 million in tuition grants to more than 300 colleges and universities nationwide.

DC-TAG is a substitute for a state university system in the District, which, unlike every state, has only one public university, the University of the District of Columbia. This year, the Congresswoman got $10 million for the District's new community college, the Community College of the District of Columbia, in the House version of the D.C. appropriations bill.

WHO: The Office of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, College Recruiters, Admission Counselors, and Financial Aid Advisers

WHAT: 2010 College & Financial Aid Expo

WHERE: National Building Museum, 401 F Street NW

WHEN: Saturday, September 18, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.