The Arizona Board of Regents is considering changes to a program that provides full-ride scholarships to excellent Arizona standardized test-takers, possibly ending the program indefinitely.
At ABOR’s Saturday meeting, there was discussion about restructuring the Regents High Honors Endorsement Award, or the AIMS Scholarship.
The award is given to qualified Arizona students who score highly on the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards exam, which all students are required to pass in order to graduate from high school.
“We talked about, particularly, if [Proposition] 100 should fail, what consequences that might have on the AIMS [Scholarship] and other things,” Regent Dennis DeConcini said.
Regents will discuss possible changes to the award at an upcoming meeting in June. The current financial climate has made it increasingly difficult for the universities to continue funding AIMS scholars’ academic careers, he said.
“We did ask each university to submit to us before our June meeting their suggestions on restructuring AIMS,” DeConcini said.
The program has many structural issues that need to be addressed, he said. Some AIMS scholars qualify for need-based aid but aren’t taking the federal funding, instead opting for the full-ride and thus forcing the universities to pay for student expenses.
There is also an issue with high school students being allowed to take the AIMS exam multiple times and receive the award, he said.
“That’s one of the potential modifications, is to let them only take it once,” DeConcini said.
Students would be able to take the AIMS exam multiple times to meet the graduation requirement, but only the results of their first attempt count toward the scholarship if ABOR passes these new guidelines.
Other possible changes include making the scholarship merit-based, only allowing it to be used for one year or capping the dollar amount.
Students who are currently maintaining the AIMS Scholarship will be unaffected by the possible changes, but future Arizona college students could be affected by the lack of incentive for taking the standardized test.
Amie Hickel, a counselor of gifted students at Desert Vista High School in Phoenix, said she hopes ABOR makes only minor changes like scaling back the amount awarded to a certain percentage every year.
“It would still give students something to look forward to,” she said. “If it’s not tied to the AIMS test, I am OK with that. But you still need to have some sort of goal — an obtainable goal that students can see.”
Hickel said she would hate to see the award become non-renewable.
“That kind of sets you up to go your first year and maybe not be able to go back,” she said. “That doesn’t help the universities with their goals of retaining those freshmen when they get there.”
Tempe campus Undergraduate Student Government President Brendan O’Kelly said he doesn’t foresee the AIMS Scholarship being cut despite the latest discussion.
“If anything, they’re just trying to restructure financial aid,” O’Kelly said.
Student regent Ross Meyer said the AIMS Scholarship has been up for discussion for the past two years and similar measures have been considered.
“I don’t think there’s been the political will to cut or change it,” Meyer said. “But that changes when we want to protect the quality of the University.”
Meyer said funds would continue to be directed toward student aid, even if the program is cut.
“I imagine the money would remain in financial aid,” Meyer said. “Money would be used more on the models the universities use, as opposed to an arbitrary test students can take as many times as they want.”
Despite the potential and drastic changes to the AIMS Scholarship, O’Kelly said students should not be discouraged.
“I don’t think discussion over the AIMS Award [should] frighten students at all,” O’Kelly said. “They won’t disestablish that, but they would restructure it.”
Reach the reporter at joseph.schmidt@asu.edu
