This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

UNIVERSITY PARK –Students and faculty at Governors State University rallied at the school Monday afternoon and say the state budget standoff is threatening their education.

The students and faculty were joined by state politicians and the Illinois Coalition to Invest in Higher Education.

They are particularly worried about the Monetary Award Program, often referred to as MAP.  These are grants from the state to assist low-income students cover college costs.

The budget crisis has left GSU and other public universities without state funding or MAP grant reimbursement.

Governors State says it has $27 million in unrecovered funds. More than 1100 students this year should have received MAP grants from the state.

But the university says it has covered the cost of those grants for the fall and spring semester so that students can continue their education.

The President of GSU says the school will corer the MAP grants again next year but she said the school is “running on fumes,” the and needs money from Springfield.