Penn may eventually receive financial compensation for accommodating victims of Hurricane Katrina.
The Department of Education has proposed a $227 million plan that would include assistance to colleges that have taken in students from affected areas across the Gulf coast.
If Congress passes the proposal, the federal government will grant colleges and universities $1,000 per displaced student. The plan would provide money for students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Penn has taken in 110 undergraduates, meaning that it could possibly receive up to $110,000 in compensation.
Mike Harris, an associate vice president in the office of the executive vice president at Penn, said that the University is not especially concerned with receiving compensatory funds.
"The most important thing is to assist and contribute," Harris said. "Financial compensation was not on the radar screen for making decisions."
Department of Education spokesman Chad Colby said that the $1,000 payments will help to cover the "unexpected costs associated with taking in displaced students."
Such costs could include residential housing and additional administrative fees.
Harris, however, said that the displaced students have not cost the University any extra money.
"They fit into available spaces in courses and classes," Harris said.
The students Penn accepted are mainly from the Philadelphia area and do not live in on-campus housing.
He added that the University is probably not earning money from the additional books and supplies purchased by these students. If there were any financial earnings, they would be marginal, he said.
Indeed, even if Congress passes the proposal, it is not clear whether Penn would receive any money.
Colby said he does not know how the government would distribute the funds but added that there would likely be an application process.
The $227 million is part of a larger $2.6 billion educational hurricane-relief package that was proposed last Friday.
Some colleges have spoken out against the fact that the $227 million will not go toward rebuilding the campuses devastated by the hurricane.
Several organizations, such as the American Association of Community Colleges, sent a letter to Congress asking for $4.3 billion for campus-reconstruction efforts.
Congress will begin to review hurricane-relief proposals this week.
