Fiscal Cliff Affects Elon 

As 2012 came to a close, Congress and the White House were able to avert the so-called “fiscal cliff”, that would have caused more than a five-hundred-thousand dollar tax increase and across-the-board spending cuts.

Though they were able to avoid the fiscal cliff, the nation will still be affected. Elon’s campus is no exception.

More than eight hundred students work jobs on campus, and many others work off campus. Taxes will increase two percent from 4.2 percent to 6.2 percent. This will directly affect students’ first paychecks of 20-13.

Vaughn Vreeland works on campus as a tour guide and will be affected by the tax increase.

“I figured it might affect some bigger corporations but I didn’t know that it would trickle down all the way to kind of like a little peon in Elon, North Carolina like myself,” Vreeland said.

The issue of spending cuts will also have an effect on incoming students’ financial support. Financial Aid and Student Loans are some students deciding factors when choosing a University.

Students like Alyssa Fonseca rely on student grants here at Elon. Fonseca said that financial aid is one of the main reasons why she chose to come to Elon University.

For many families, the cost of college will continue to be an issue. A family’s ability to rely on student loans will be reduced.

Director of Financial Planning, Patrick Murphy, stated concerns about financial aid for future students. He said that if we still go off the fiscal cliff, come fall of 2014, fewer students would be eligible for student aid. As of now, students are still safe.