Grex Parenting Conference

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Grex Parenting Item 116: college education planning for the elementary school set
Entered by jep on Wed Dec 3 03:30:29 UTC 2003:

What are you doing for your kid's college education?

Are you saving money?

Do you have a 529 plan set up?  (A state-based plan where the state 
guarantees you in-state tuition if you keep up your payments to the 
plan, such as the Michigan Education Trust.)

Are you investing in another way?

Do you participate in the upromise.com program?

Do you regard your kid's education as their problem, if they're even 
interested in college?

You can't afford it right now, but plan to do something later?

If your kids are already in college, or college age, did you save or 
invest for them?  Have any regrets?

17 responses total.

#1 of 17 by jep on Wed Dec 3 03:51:31 2003:

This is something I think about a few times of year, but I haven't 
done anything about it yet.  Under the MET program:

http://www.michigan.gov/treasury/0,1607,7-121-1752_2235_2236---,00.html

I could pay $440 per month for the next 6 years and guarantee my kid's 
in-state tuition when he's ready for college.  Or $336 for the next 
ten years.  The MET also allows contributing for lesser amounts. For 
$200 per month it'll guarantee 6 semesters of tuition.

Michigan also has the Michigan Educational Savings Program (MESP), 
which is an investment and savings program.  If you open that plan 
when your kid is 6 or younger, then you get 1 for 3 matching dollars.  
You contribute $3, the state kicks in a buck.  I've never heard of the 
MESP program until today, so don't know much about it.  Man, I wish I 
had a year ago.

#2 of 17 by happyboy on Wed Dec 3 08:39:39 2003:

i'm sendin my girl to motech.

#3 of 17 by tod on Wed Dec 3 17:15:45 2003:

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#4 of 17 by glenda on Wed Dec 3 18:11:08 2003:

They can go to college the same way I have.  Work for it and get some sort
of scholarship and/or financial aid.  We did cover what financial aid didn't
for the two semesters Damon attended.  He decided not to go back for the
moment and get a job instead.  With my being in the higher level classes and
getting ready to apply to graduate school before long, he is going to have
do it on his own for a while.  Staci is not interested in attending college
any time soon.  She and a friend or two are planning on going to Europe,
Germany in particular, for about a year after graduation.  She will decide
after that what she really wants to do with the rest of her life.  I think
she has the right idea.  A lot of kids really aren't ready for college right
out of high school.  They really need a taste of life before making such a
serious decision as major and life career.  I know I did.

My entire school life I planned on being a nurse when I grew up.  My parents
failed to turn in the paperwork necessary for me to collect and use the
National Merit Scholarship that I won and I couldn't afford to go to school
without it.  hey couldn't afford to send me (I am the oldest of six).  So I
worked as a Nurse's Aide for a while.  Long enough to discover that I could
not keep the emotional detachment needed to remain sane.  I then took an
aptitude test that showed I really should be in a field like computer
programming or engineering.  I tried computers and found my calling.

I would rather that my kids "find their calling" before spending a lot of
time, money, and effort on schooling to discover that it is not what they
really want to do.  Damon has already discovered from the few classes he has
taken that he is really more interested in psychology than computer
programming and game writing as he had thought.  Fortunately the classes he
has already taken can apply to either field, and so aren't "wasted."

#5 of 17 by tod on Wed Dec 3 18:19:54 2003:

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#6 of 17 by happyboy on Wed Dec 3 19:18:30 2003:

absolutely. 


how much does motech cost?

#7 of 17 by tod on Wed Dec 3 19:53:35 2003:

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#8 of 17 by happyboy on Wed Dec 3 21:01:05 2003:

she's DEFINITELY going to MoTech now!

#9 of 17 by tod on Wed Dec 3 23:59:28 2003:

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#10 of 17 by happyboy on Thu Dec 4 07:24:16 2003:

"but paw, we don't have no station waggin, the repo man come an
took it away!"

#11 of 17 by tod on Thu Dec 4 19:55:56 2003:

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#12 of 17 by gracel on Sun Jan 18 18:22:54 2004:

Reverting to the original topic:
My parents paid for undergraduate education (at an inexpensive land-
grant university) for their four children.  Dave's parents paid for
much of his, though he had part-time or summer jobs to help.
I wouldn't demand that children be totally independent at eighteen.
(If they want to declare themselves independent, and act like it,
that would be their privilege)  Furthermore, my father gave us
several chunks of money earmarked for our boys' education,
and left me some inheritance that I'm willing to use for that
purpose.  We haven't saved money on our own for college, but we've
managed not to spend those gifts.

If either of our two boys decides that he wants to study at the most 
expensive place available, then we'll tell him what we can afford to 
contribute and he'll have to come up with the rest through
scholarships or hard labor.  If he decides that the local community 
college is the way to go, then we'll probably cover the cost, and 
expect to be involved in his choices as much as we have been heretofore.  
In between is in between ...

Jonathan is in junior year, waiting to hear PSAT/NMSQT results,
interested in college mail but not taking it seriously yet.  (I did
get him to think about distance, so he's stopped asking for more 
information from colleges on the West Coast or in New Orleans)
Paul is in eighth grade and totally not concerned about this yet.

#13 of 17 by tod on Mon Jan 19 20:00:37 2004:

This response has been erased.

#14 of 17 by gracel on Tue Jan 20 18:52:24 2004:

Quoting myself: (If they want to declare themselves independent, and 
act like it, that would be their privilege)

#15 of 17 by c444l on Tue Jul 13 04:52:13 2004:

I don't really think independence is so much of a privilege, but a right.

#16 of 17 by happyboy on Tue Jul 13 17:01:07 2004:

at what age?

#17 of 17 by kami on Mon Jul 19 03:32:44 2004:

Complicated idea- independence. 
I don't think is't *either* a right or a privilege, but a fact. As parents,
we can do a lot to help our kids to become independent adults. But some 
turn out that way inspite of all obstacles, and some avoid it despite all
encouragement. 
When a kid "declares" him/herself independent, then they surely aren't. They
are still tacitly asking permission, looking for boundaries- if only to
fight againts them. When a kid is really ready to be treated as an independent
being, they are already taking responsibililty for the results of their
actions, using good judgement, whether they live on their own or not. As
such, I don't see college tuition as part of the independence equation. If
I have the ability to help my kids to acheive their best potential, I will,
no strings attached. If I have a good *kid*, they will appreciate what
help I can give them- whether it's guidance in seeking out financial aid, or
money for tuition. If I have a young adult, they will participate in 
figuring out what kind of assistance they need and whether they will need
to repay it (bank of Mom or US government or internship or military, etc.),
and on what terms, and what's really worth the price.  
My Dad, who was the child of immigrants and who lived through the great
Depression, is desperately afraid that too easy assistance will make his
struggling grandkids lazy and dependent. Nope! At nearly 30, their character

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