Trump wants to send NASA back to the moon using low income students' college tuition
The programme is running at an intentional surplus to guard against surges in grant applications, after the 2008 financial crisis left the system deep in debt
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump wants to take the United States back to the moon, and is willing to slash an education grant that helps low-income college students pay their tuition to get there.
Under a new proposal from the Trump administration sent to Congress, the president is asking that some $1.6bn (£1.2bn) in funding be reallocated from the US federal Pell Grant programme into Nasa, citing a budget surplus for the grant represents the largest source of aid for low-income students in America.
The money is being sought in order to help launch a mission to the moon in 2024, a full four years earlier than initially planned by the space agency.
But, the planned funding source has been criticised on several fronts, with even those in the space community crying foul.
“I’m all for space travel and returning to the moon but not at the expense of education,” Jose Hernandez, a retired Nasa astronaut, tweeted in response to the news. “If the Pell Grant money is a surplus, how about increasing the size of grants so college grads don’t graduate with so much debt?”
The federal pell grant programme helps more than seven million students each year, with awards ranging depending on income, but reaching as high as $6,095 per student.
The plan to strip money from the programme comes as the United States is encountering a deepening student loan crisis, with debt for secondary education topping $1.5tn this year among 44 million borrowers. That's the highest debt load for student loans in US history.
In response to the Trump administration’s plans, education groups like the American Council on Education said that cutting money from the surplus could destabilise the Pell Grant programme in the years to come.
“Sure, there is no immediate impact, but what you have done is undercut the stability of a programme that’s really critical for helping students afford college,” Jon Fansmith, the director for government relations for the organisation, told PBS. “This really is an expression of priorities by the administration.”
The surplus for the programme had been intentionally built to guard against sudden surges in the demand for the grants, which can happened during times of economic downturn. That cushion is intended to help guard against a repeat of the circumstances following the 2008 recession, when the number of recipients jumped by 1.2 million and plunged the programme into a $10bn deficit.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments