Ivy League Investigating Cornell Financial Aid Practices

MetaEzra is reporting today that the Ivy League is investigating Cornell's two-tiered financial aid calculations. The idea was that there would be a separate, more generous financial aid formula applied to students whom the university really wanted. Here's what then-S.A. President Ryan Lavin said at the time the new system was announced:

“Selecting students for greater aid based on certain characteristics of their candidacy, whether the student be an athlete or an underrepresented minority, is a fundamental change in financial aid policy,” Ryan Lavin ’09, S.A. president, said. “Students with the same financial need eligibility could have different packages under this new system.”

Of course, at MetaEzra pointed out at the time, this sounds like a form of merit-based aid, which is a violation of Ivy rules.

We'll see whether there's an official statement (i.e. Cornell Chronicle article) from the University. It'll be interesting to see what Robin Harris and friends have to say on the matter.