MSU Listserv


EQUITY Archives

EQUITY Archives


EQUITY@LIST.MSU.EDU


View:

Message:

[

First

|

Previous

|

Next

|

Last

]

By Topic:

[

First

|

Previous

|

Next

|

Last

]

By Author:

[

First

|

Previous

|

Next

|

Last

]

Font:

Monospaced Font

LISTSERV at MSU

LISTSERV at MSU

EQUITY Home

EQUITY Home

EQUITY  September 2006

EQUITY September 2006

Subject:

Fwd: Chronicle Article on ACSFA Hearing-Mortgaging Our Future: How Financial Barriers to College Undercut America's Global Competitiveness

From:

Rudy Redmond <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To:

Retention & Graduation Issues Concerning Minorities in Higher Education <[log in to unmask]>

Date:

Wed, 20 Sep 2006 12:44:31 -0400

Content-Type:

text/plain

Parts/Attachments:

Parts/Attachments

text/plain (112 lines)

http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/hiedfuture/reports/pre-pub-report.pdf

>>> heather Valentine <[log in to unmask]> 9/20/2006 9:44 AM
>>>
Education Leaders Say Financial Barriers to Degree Attainment Require
Urgent Response

By Jane R. Porter

Higher-education leaders came together on Tuesday to discuss a recent
report on financial barriers to college access and degree completion,
and warned that a failure to find solutions could threaten not only the
prospects of individual students but the status of the nation as a
whole.

The session was part of a hearing held by the Advisory Committee on
Student Financial Assistance, a panel that advises Congress and that
released last week's report
(http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/acsfa/mof.pdf) on financial
barriers for students from low- to moderate-income families (The
Chronicle (http://chronicle.com/daily/2006/09/2006091403n.htm), 09/14/06
[Note: Subscription Required]).

William E. Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland and
one of the presenters at the session, expressed concern with the
report's findings about the effects of rising college costs and
insufficient financial aid for disadvantaged students. "We as a nation
are at risk of creating a permanent underclass," he said.

The report, "Mortgaging Our Future: How Financial Barriers to College
Undercut America's Global Competitiveness," has a particular urgency, he
said, because of coming mass retirements of baby boomers and the risk of
replacing them with less qualified candidates, he said.

Arnold L. Mitchem, president of the Council for Opportunity in
Education and one of the panelists, said the report could serve as a way
to "galvanize Americans in understanding what the stakes really are" in
the persistence of such financial barriers.

Mr. Mitchem, whose organization lobbies on behalf of the federal TRIO
programs for disadvantaged students, was among several panel members who
expressed alarm at the report's estimate that up to 2.4-million
bachelor's degrees will be lost in this decade because of financial
barriers.

Another speaker, A. Dallas Martin Jr., president of the National
Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, cautioned that the
nation's competitiveness could become "an endangered species" if the
recommendations presented in the report are not followed.

Panelists focused on the committee's six proposed solutions, the most
important of which called for strengthening partnerships on the federal,
state, and institutional level to help increase need-based aid.

But controlling the rapid growth in merit-based aid is another critical
approach to curbing the problem. Mr. Kirwan said merit-based awards have
increased by 240 percent in the past decade, compared with a 56-percent
increase in need-based aid.

David S. Baime, vice president for government relations at the American
Association of Community Colleges, told the group that the trend toward
merit-based aid is a "very dangerous course" for the nation to be
taking. Merit-based programs are often poorly targeted, he said,
excluding part-time students and those working toward a certificate
instead of a degree.

Mr. Kirwan suggested that models already developed by highly selective
colleges and universities be applied on a larger scale to all
institutions of higher education. Programs that incorporate Work-Study
opportunities and federal grants to help offset the cost of attending
college have proven to be successful and require collaboration between
the government, the state, and the college or university.

Mr. Baime expressed particular concern with the report's findings that
only 19 percent of low-income qualified students who completed
trigonometry in high school and entered a two-year higher-education
program with the expectation of earning a bachelor's degree went on to
receive that degree, versus 69 percent of similar students who entered a
four-year college. He echoed the report's suggestion that the transition
from two-year to four-year colleges be made easier for students.

Mr. Baime also supported another of the report's recommendations, which
called for increased support of remedial programs in colleges. More than
half of all community-college students receive some sort of remedial
instruction, he said, calling that a strong indicator of the need for
such programs.

David L. Warren, president of the National Association of Independent
Colleges and Universities, was alarmed at the increasing reliance on
loans, pointing out that "25 percent of all students are now going to
college on their credit cards." Policy makers should counter that trend
with more need-based aid, he said, citing the Pell Grant program as an
effective solution that has not received sufficient federal support.

Panelists also agreed that improving early-intervention programs in
elementary and secondary schools for students from lower-income families
would help ensure that they are better prepared for bachelor's-degree
programs. Sarita E. Brown, president of Excelencia in Education Inc.,
which advocates for programs to increase the educational attainment of
Hispanic students, stressed the importance of redefining the notion of
higher education as a national rather than simply a private good.

Mr. Warren and other panelists agreed. "Student aid has to be seen as
an investment," he said, "not an expenditure."

The morning discussion was followed by a session on the study of
college-textbook pricing, which examined how policy options and methods
of increased communication can help regulate book prices. The session
was the first of a number of such hearings that will be held around the
country. Findings and recommendations from those hearings will be
delivered to the U.S. House of Representatives education committee next
May.

Top of Message | Previous Page | Permalink

Advanced Options


Options

Log In

Log In

Get Password

Get Password


Search Archives

Search Archives


Subscribe or Unsubscribe

Subscribe or Unsubscribe


Archives

January 2020
March 2018
August 2017
February 2017
October 2016
July 2016
June 2016
April 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
August 2015
July 2015
May 2015
April 2015
February 2015
January 2015
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
July 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
March 2006
February 2006
January 2006
December 2005
November 2005
October 2005
September 2005
August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
May 2005

ATOM RSS1 RSS2



LIST.MSU.EDU

CataList Email List Search Powered by the LISTSERV Email List Manager