Ohio Colleges Face Tight Budget Cuts

Local universities are about to get squeezed by budget cuts, along with the financial programs that high school seniors need to afford tuition.

News Center 7 talked with some high school students from Ohio in Washington D.C., who were there on a field trip, and they were talking about how tough it is going to be to afford.

Bill Johnson said, "If they cut costs, then I can't go to college. It's just that simple. I want to be a lawyer."

Lawmakers in Washington are chopping financial aid programs.

A report released this week said Pell grants for Ohio students could be cut from $3,600 a year to $1,700 a year. This would force about 58,000 Ohio students to lose their financial aid.

However, a News Center 7 review of three major schools found that the colleges are getting squeezed even tighter.

Officials at Ohio State University said it's longtime employees will take early retirement, and that all departments face 3 percent budget cuts.

Ohio University said it is facing a staggering $9 million shortfall and will announce a series of program reductions on May 12.

Officials with Miami University has reduced its staff by 370 people, and again halted pay raises. Miami's president said the budget cuts have been brutal.

"It has very significant and serious implications for us to be affordable and accessible to a wide range of students," said David Hodge.

Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown told News Center 7 that about 26,000 college students in Miami and Montgomery counties will now qualify for the so-called American Opportunity College Tax Credit, which was approved years ago in the landmark federal stimulus plan.