Maryland governor offers fast admission, $800 credit to freshmen unenrolled from Howard University
Howard University in Washington, D.C.
WASHINGTON - Maryland Governor Wes Moore is stepping in to assist hundreds of incoming freshmen who were unenrolled from Howard University this month due to unpaid tuition balances.
What we know:
The governor offered impacted students fast-tracked admission to any of the 12 University System of Maryland (USM) schools. USM will also provide the students with an $800 credit to offset the non-refundable deposits they paid to Howard University before being unenrolled.
READ MORE | Howard unenrolled students: Social media reacts to what we know and what comes next
Students who wish to take advantage of the opportunity are urged to contact the Maryland Higher Education Commission.
Howard University reinstates over 200 students
The governor’s announcement comes as Howard University President Dr. Wayne Frederick defends the university's decision to issue the unenrollment notices.
Howard University president speaks out after freshmen unenrolled
The president of Howard University discussed why hundreds of freshmen were unenrolled.
In a video statement, Dr. Frederick said multiple warnings were issued to students before the actions were taken.
"Considerable numbers of students did not comply with the required deadlines and were unenrolled," Dr. Frederick said, adding that "at the same time we recognized that some students' individual circumstances deserved additional review."
Following individual case reviews, more than 200 of the affected students have since been re-enrolled, though nearly 300 freshmen remain unenrolled.
FOX 5’s Tom Fitzgerald spoke with Dr. Frederick Thursday, where he responded to the governor’s offer to students.
"I welcome anybody who is willing to assist the students," he said. "I want to see all of these students get to college and matriculate. We certainly want to keep them in the Howard family, and those are students that we will still look for an opportunity to transfer them into Howard, and for those who want to defer their enrollment for a year, we can accommodate that as well."
Students point to aid delays and communication issues
What they're saying:
While Howard University maintains that unenrolled students had outstanding tuition balances, many impacted freshmen argued that the system failed to account for pending financial aid, scholarships, or military benefits that were not set to post to their accounts until August 1.
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Isabella Williams, an incoming Howard freshman who was reinstated after being unenrolled, pushed back on the university's actions and called for reform in its admissions process.
"A lot of people assumed since their HU scholarships covered over 50% of their tuition, they didn’t have to pay that. A lot of people were waiting on external scholarships. We submitted them, and they still told us that we couldn’t enroll," Williams said. "It just seems they are not taking care of us the way they are supposed to."
While acknowledging the university's need to enforce deadlines, Williams also noted that communication was lacking throughout the process.
"Their policies is that they’re trying to make sure we all pay on time. That’s great, it’s necessary, but it should not come at the expense of their students," she added.
The Source: The information in this report is from Howard University and FOX 5 DC reporting.