This past week in Springfield, Illinois’ legislature has proposed a bill that would make it so that MAP grant students will have to pay back their grants if they move outside of the state within five years of graduating from undergrad. This is unacceptable and I am going to tell you all why you should get mad. Once again, I am going against my normal style by obviously picking a side for this issue. However I think that this is extremely important to anyone who is receiving aid from the state of Illinois.

Life moves on. When you graduate from college there is a world of opportunities that await you. With a diploma in one hand and a stack of resumes in the other you are ready to conquer the world. However according to this new bill you, as a student who was in need of aid to go to college, are forced to narrow your “world” to the state of Illinois.

It is no secret that Illinois has a terrible economy and job market. Many people who are born in Illinois are just itching to get out of it. While I can maybe understand their logic behind making this bill, I do not believe that it is proper grounds for forcibly changing the future of our generation. They think if they force people to stay in Illinois it will help to boost the economy. However it is not within their rights to do this.

The definition of a grant is that you are GIVEN money so that you can accomplish what you set out to do. It is a GIFT. You do not ask someone to repay for a GIFT with interest simply because you don’t like what they are using it for. You cannot change the definition of a grant. When people accept a grant it is under the impression that they will not have to pay it back.

Now here it is going to get personal. I am a vocal performance major. In order for me to have a successful career I need to go to grad school. The best graduate schools for my focus are located outside of Illinois. After grad school I will have the best opportunities on the east coast. As a performer I will barely be able to pay back some of my regular loans let alone grants that I never budgeted in the first place.

So here is my message for Springfield.  “The American Dream” is that anyone can make their dream come true with hard work. While I don’t exactly believe in the notion of the American dream, I believe that this takes away freedom from a generation who is already suffering from insurmountable debts imposed upon them by a system that is so necessary that debt has become a rite of passage for our generation and our country. Forcing students to stay in Illinois could ruin their futures. You are making my generation prisoner for things beyond our control. This is unacceptable. I have had it with the past generations playing games with mine. I hope you are happy with your decisions because you are making our future one hell of a mess.

Students, take my advice. Get angry. Speak up. Educate yourselves. We are the future and we have to deal with what they leave behind so don’t take this sitting down.