Students who receive the Illinois MAP grant will see their awards shrink by 5 percent this semester. An e-mail from the Financial Aid Office detailing the change was sent out to students on Jan. 6.

“It stinks, but I understand why,” said Jaimee Kartheiser, fifth-year special education major. “The state is in bad shape.”

The e-mail also encouraged students to fill out the FAFSA as soon as possible to ensure they are awarded the maximum amount they can receive.

“I feel it was a poor choice to let the students know in the middle of the year,” said senior communications major Jamika Edwards. “It cost me a chunk of my refund check.”

The MAP grant was cut during the 2009-2010 academic year in an effort to ease the state’s financial burdens, but was reinstated for the second half of that year.

To be eligible for the grant, a student needs to have satisfactory continuous academic progress and to have lived in the state at least one year prior to the academic school year.

As a result of the cut, Kartheiser said she is looking at other options to fund her education.

“I have an unsubsidized loan that covers the remaining cost,” Kartheiser said.

Another e-mail from the Financial Aid Office included other options for students who need help making up the difference.

The Financial Aid Office was contacted for this story, but did not respond as of press time.