Saving for Your Kids' College? Financial Aid Might Not Be Enough

Although his daughters aren't yet in high school, Tinley Park resident Ralph Politano has already started saving for their college education.

But that might not be enough, local college funding experts told a group of parents at the Tinley Park Public Library.

Tinley Park-based consulting group College Funding Strategies spoke to a crowd of about 40 Wednesday night, helping parents of college-bound students plan for the high cost of an education.

Financial aid and savings plans – even 529 plans, which allow parents to save money for their child's education tax-free – might not be enough to pay for college in the future, they said.

"I have a 529 plan for both girls, and my daughter just started eighth grade," Politano said. "But I'm always curious as to what people think it will be like five to 10 years from now. Just to see what we should prepare for."

Many parents like Politano could face the problem of earning too much, yet not enough, according to Ronald Rago of College Funding Strategies.

"The vast majorities probably make too much to get financial aid, but they still don't make that much money," said Rago, who joined CFS in 2006. "Just because someone makes $150,000 per year doesn't mean they have $30,000 or $40,000 lying around."

Speaking from experience, Rago said he found out what it was like to be unprepared when he lost his job while his daughter was in high school.

"When my job was eliminated, the real panic settled in. I realized that I was not prepared for college. My little girl who was this big for so long," said Rago, motioning toward the ground, "was suddenly in the middle of high school."

College Funding Strategies founder Patrick Kaiser and longtime member Bill Adams gave parents strict advice about what they and their children should be doing to prepare for college.

"I would recommend that young people have two or three activities," said Adams, adding that students need to go above and beyond in order to get more financial assistance. "Don't just preside over the Spanish club. Organize a trip to Spain."

In the past, CFS has spoken to parents about topics including putting together letters of intent, asking for letters of recommendation and strategies for taking tests.

"They just give an informational presentation about how to send your kid to college without ending up in a mound of debt," said Susan Dienes, who is in charge of marketing and community outreach at the library. "They've done this a couple of times in the past. And have had as many as 80 people show up."