By ANDREA JONES
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/12/07 It just got a lot cheaper for low- and middle-income students to attend Atlanta’s premier private college.

Emory University announced a plan Thursday to replace need-based loans with grants for students whose parents earn $50,000 or less — meaning those children can attend for a fraction of the normal cost.

Also under the program, which starts this fall, middle-income students — whose families earn between $50,001 and $100,000 — won’t have to take out more than $15,000 in loans over a four-year period, school officials said. Emory will pay the rest.

It normally costs about $44,800 — $32,100 of that tuition — to attend a year at Emory.

“These new programs will make it possible for any qualified student to obtain the advantages of an Emory education regardless of family background or circumstance,” Emory President James Wagner announced Thursday.

“We are especially concerned to address the particular needs of many middle-income families, who ironically make too much money to qualify for many types of financial aid, but who find themselves unable to afford four years of college education without incurring substantial levels of debt.”