Students receiving assistance from the Monetary Award Program will finally be getting an official explanation this week.

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission has issued a letter which will be sent out to all MAP recipients. The letter explains why the cuts were made.

The letter states that due to the state’s budget problems, all second semester 1991-92 MAP grants will be cut by 12 percent.

The MAP program was cut to allow ISAC to offset state budget cuts, and to meet increased demands for assistance because of higher than projected enrollment.

Barbara Henley, vice president for Student Affairs, said NIU realizes the negative impact of the MAP reductions, and is currently exploring ways to assist some students.

Students who are affected by the reductions should continue to attend classes until NIU is able to completely clarify the level of assistance, if any, that we can provide, she said.

Students will be contacted before the end of spring semester if they owe any money to NIU as a result of the reductions in the MAP awards, she said.

As of now, NIU still does not know how it will handle the cuts. NIU is still studying the effects the cuts will have on students.