Changing the PROMISE

A new report recommends that West Virginia cap its merit-based, PROMISE college scholarship awards to $4,500 a year to arrest explosive growth in the program, The Associated Press reports.

The advisory committee assigned to assess PROMISE found evidence that its was meeting its goals, albeit modestly, of increasing the state's college-going rate and its share of degree holders.

But the report also links prior efforts to control costs, by upping academic requirements, to a drop in the percentage of lower income students reaching college.

"An unintended consequence is that lower-income recipients become ineligible at a higher rate than their middle- or upper-income counterparts," the report said.

The committee also "found more harm than good with converting the scholarships into loans for recipients who then leave the state," AP reports. "Gov. Joe Manchin had proposed that change last year, then withdrew it to await the study's results when lawmakers balked."

The report further recommends a community service component for recipients. The Charleston Gazette had earlier outlined what had been expected from the committee's report, released Tuesday to legislators. MetroNews also has an item, with audio from Higher Education Policy Commission Chairman Brian Noland.