Recently in Higher Education

News of the Day: Political Economy: Logic Prevails

By
Kruger, Mike
 on August 4, 2009 11:30 AM
CQ Politics ran John Cranford's column yesterday explaining the logic behind the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.

Two weeks ago, the House Education and Labor Committee, with the strong encouragement of the Obama administration, took a step toward ending the false premise that private lenders are full partners in the federally subsidized college loan program. If a bill approved by the committee becomes law, private lenders will be cut out of this program and will have to stop dining at their taxpayer-provided trough.
....
The lenders have held up the pretense that they provide better service than does an arm of the federal government and that there are actually differences among bank loans, so that students stand to benefit by picking one over the other.

Sorry, but that notion is a sham. Congress has long required that the terms of these loans be identical, regardless of whether they are issued by the government or a private lender. It doesn’t matter to the student where the money comes from — the dollar amounts, the interest rates and even the repayment terms are virtually the same.

For taxpayers, though, there is a difference, and it’s a big one. In the case of presumed “private” loans, the government pays more than it does for “direct” loans — billions of dollars more — because it guarantees the principal amount and it promises a minimal return to the lender. Banks are supposed to be compensated for taking risks, but in the case of government-subsidized student loans, they incur almost no risk. Yet they get compensated anyway.

Moreover, there’s ample evidence that some private lenders have engaged in questionable or worse behavior to persuade colleges to funnel student borrowers their way. When money is free, people will do all sorts of things to get their hands on it. And that raises questions about why lawmakers would want to perpetuate a system that promotes graft, as well as waste.
Learn more about the benefits of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act and read Mr. Cranford's complete column.

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News of the Day: More Scare Tactics from Opponents of SAFRA

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 29, 2009 10:50 AM
Stephen Burd at The Higher Ed Watch Blog has a very thorough post about some of the scare tactics from opponents of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.Opponents have said that despite the $40 billion dollar increase to Pell Grants, it is a "setback for students" because it removes "the ability for borrowers to choose a lender."

As Mr. Burd so elegantly points out:

If there is anything that we learned from the "pay for play" student loan scandal, it is how little choice borrowers in the FFEL program actually have. Don't forget that in 2007, the Education Department found that one lender made at least 80 percent of students' federal loans at 921 participating colleges. That same year, the research firm Student Marketmeasure reported that 1,412 FFEL schools had one loan provider that made 80 percent of their students' federal loans, with 531 of those colleges recommending only a single lender to their students. What kind of a choice is that?

and as Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY), a former Provost of Southampton College where he worked for 29 years, said at the markup of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, "I never once encountered a student who was focused on choice. What they were focused on was 'Can I get the money?' and 'Can you guarantee me that I can get the money?'"

We encourage you to read Mr. Burd's complete post as well as learn more about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.

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News of the Day: The Student Loan Scam

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 22, 2009 9:00 AM
Yesterday the New York Times published an editorial about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act entitled, "The Student Loan Scam." The lede says:

The federal college loan program that pays private lenders a generous subsidy to make loans that are guaranteed by the government is an enormous waste of money that has long served more to enrich lenders than to help students.
That is why the Education and Labor Committee passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act with bipartisan support yesterday. As the New York Times editorial explains:

[It] would end the unnecessary private lending subsidies and plow the savings into important education programs. The bill, for example, devotes $40 billion to the all-important Pell grant program, which has allowed millions of poor and working-class students to attend college.

It would spend $8 billion on early-education programs and $10 billion on an initiative aimed at strengthening community colleges. It sets aside $4 billion for a school modernization and improvement program.

The consolidated program proposed in the bill would in no way expand government. The loans would be handled through colleges. They would be serviced and collected by private companies and nonprofits that are already lining up to get the work. By forcing the companies to compete, and to undergo periodic re-evaluations, Congress could get a good deal for taxpayers and better service for borrowers.
Learn more about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act and read the entire New York Times' editorial.

Supporters of the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 20, 2009 1:30 PM
Support for the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act

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Committee to Consider Landmark Student Aid Legislation

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 20, 2009 10:04 AM | Comments (1)
On Tuesday, July 21st, the House Education and Labor Committee will consider legislation that will make college dramatically more affordable by investing billions of dollars in additional student aid, at no cost to taxpayers. The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 will generate almost $100 billion in savings over the next ten years that will be used to boost Pell Grant scholarships, keep interest rates on federal loans affordable, safeguard federal student loan access for families, and enact President Obama’s key education priorities. The legislation, which was introduced earlier today, pays for itself by making the federal student loan programs more reliable, effective and cost-efficient for students, families and taxpayers.

WHAT:         
Full Committee Mark-Up of H.R. 2187 “H.R. 3221, The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009”

WHEN:         
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
11:00 a.m. ET
Please check the Committee schedule for potential updates »

WHERE:      
House Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room
2175 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C.

News of the Day: End student-loan profiteering

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 20, 2009 10:00 AM
This morning's Boston Globe editorial calls for ending taxpayer subsidy to banks who make no-risk federal student loans that are insured by the government. After going through the many new benefits under the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009, the Globe says this:

This taxpayer money is urgently needed to provide aid to students for whom a four-year college is out of reach. Earlier this week, Obama proposed to infuse $12 billion into community colleges. Another block of savings will give extra funding for Pell Grants and link them with cost-of-living increases.

In this economic climate, Congress must fix the broken system that unnecessarily takes money from taxpayers and students. Educational investments should go straight to students.
We encourage you to read the entire editorial, as well as learn more about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009.

UPDATE: We also suggest you read the Washington Post article about Lifelines in the Student Loan Sea.

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White House statement on Chairman Miller's education reform bill

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 15, 2009 6:30 PM | Comments (1)

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________________________

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                 July 15, 2009

 

 

Statement from the President on Chairman Miller’s education reform bill

 

I applaud Chairman Miller for introducing an education reform bill that will cut giveaways to special interests, invest in our children’s future, and save taxpayer’s money. 

 

Chairman Miller and I are working to end the wasteful subsidies that are given to banks and private lenders for student loans.  Instead, his legislation will make college more affordable by paying for annual increases in Pell Grants that keep pace with inflation.  He’s also working with us to simplify financial aid forms and increase graduation rates. 

 

This legislation will also help us reach the goal I set out in Michigan this week to graduate five million more Americans from community colleges by 2020.  These institutions can act as job training centers for the 21st century, and this legislation makes the largest investment in community colleges in fifty years, challenging them to increase completion rates, strengthen ties with businesses, modernize facilities, and offer new online learning opportunities.  Chairman Miller’s legislation will also invest in high-quality early education that can save taxpayers several dollars for every one we spend.  It includes $10 billion for early learning challenge grants that will ask states to ensure that the number of children who start school ready to learn is growing each year.

 

Finally, I am proud that this legislation not only pays for itself, but also saves taxpayers money and reduces the deficit.  I look forward to working with the Chairman and Congress to make this bill even stronger and pass it before the end of the year.

Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:35 AM
Read the entire Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.(HR3221) (PDF 327 KB)

A Landmark Investment in America’s Economic Future

Americans need affordable, quality education opportunities to help make our economy strong and competitive again. President Obama has identified an opportunity to make historic investments in our economic future by improving early education opportunities and making college dramatically more affordable – and all at no cost to taxpayers.

The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act embraces the president’s challenge. It will help us reach his goal of producing the most college graduates by 2020 by making college accessible and transforming the way our student loan programs operate. It will expand quality early education opportunities that will put more children on the path to success. It will strengthen community colleges and training programs to help build a highly-skilled, innovative, 21st century workforce ready for the rigors of a global economy. And it will boost the fiscal health of the country our children will inherit by paying down the deficit. (What's in the bill for you?)
 
 
Invests the bill’s savings in making college affordable and helping more Americans graduate

  • Invests $40 billion to increase the maximum annual Pell Grant scholarship to $5,550 in 2010 and to $6,900 by 2019. Starting in 2011, the scholarship will be linked to match rising costs-of-living by indexing it to the Consumer Price Index plus 1 percent.
     
Thumbnail image for obamapellgrants2010-2019.JPG
 
  • Invests $3 billion to bolster college access and completion support programs for students. It will increase funding for the College Access Challenge Grant program, and will also fund innovative programs at states and institutions that focus on increasing financial literacy and helping retain and graduate students. 
  • Strengthens the Perkins Loan program, a campus-based program that provides low-cost federal loans to students, by providing the program with more reliable forms of credit from the federal government and expanding the program to include significantly more college campuses.
  • Keeps interest rates low on need-based – or subsidized – federal student loans by making the interest rates on these loans variable beginning in 2012. These interest rates are currently set to jump from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent in 2012.
  • Makes it easier for families to apply for financial aid by simplifying the FAFSA form. Building on proposals recently put forth by the Obama administration, the legislation will dramatically cut down the number of questions on the form by allowing students and families to apply for aid using the information on their tax returns.
  • Invests $2.55 billion in Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority-Serving Institutions to provide students with the support they need to stay in school and graduate.
  • Provides loan forgiveness for members of the military who are called up to duty in the middle of the academic year.
     
Provides reliable, affordable, high-quality Federal student loans for all families

  • Converts all new federal student lending to the stable, effective and cost-efficient Direct Loan program. Beginning July 1, 2010, all new federal student loans will be originated through the Direct Loan program, instead of through lenders subsidized by taxpayers in the federally-guaranteed student loan program. Unlike the lender-based program, the Direct Loan program is entirely insulated from market swings and can therefore guarantee students access to low-cost federal college loans, in any economy.
  • Provides all federal student loan borrowers with upgraded, modern, state-of-the-art customer service. Rather than force private industry out of the system, the bill will forge a new public-private partnership that provides all borrowers with the highest-quality customer service when repaying their loans and maintains jobs. It will establish a competitive bidding process that allows the U.S. Department of Education to select lenders based on how well they serve borrowers, educate them financially, and prevent loan defaults. It will provide a role for non-profits to continue servicing student loans.

Prepares students and workers for 21st century jobs by providing all Americans with the skills and resources they need to compete

  • Build a 21st century workforce by encouraging historic partnerships between community colleges, states, businesses, job training and adult education programs. The bill will create a new competitive grant program for community colleges to improve instruction, work with local employers, improve their student support services, and implement other innovative reforms that will lead to a college degree, certificate or industry recognized credential to help fulfill local workforce needs.
  • Expands access to education by supporting free, high-quality, online training, high school and college courses. The U.S. Department of Education would be authorized to make competitive grants available to eligible colleges, workforce programs or other entities to help support the development of these courses.
  • Ensures that community college students can learn in modern, updated, state-of-the-art facilities by renovating campuses in need of repair.

Ensures that the next generation of children enters kindergarten with the skills they need to succeed in school

  • Increases the number of low income children entering kindergarten prepared to succeed by reforming state standards and practices for birth-to-five early learning programs. The legislation would create an Early Learning Challenge Fund, which would award competitive grants to states that implement comprehensive standards-based reform of the state’s early learning system that will transform early education standards and practices, build an effective early childhood workforce, and improve the school readiness outcomes of young children.
  • Provides every child with access to a world-class learning environment by providing school districts with funds for school modernization, renovation, and repair projects that will create healthier, safer, and more energy-efficient teaching and learning climates.

Meets Pay-As-You-Go fiscally responsible principles and reduces the deficit 

  • Saves taxpayers $87 billion over ten years by switching to the cheaper Direct Loan program, according to the Congressional Budget Office. In addition to investing in college aid, this legislation will also direct $8 billion in savings back to the U.S. Treasury to help pay down the deficit. 

(Myths vs. Facts about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act)

Support for the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act

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SAFRA: Reliable, Affordable College Loans for Families

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:34 AM
The financial crisis exposed serious vulnerabilities in the lender-based federally guaranteed student loan programs – putting the low-cost federal loans that millions of families count on in jeopardy. Now more than ever, students and families need access to reliable, stable forms of federal student aid to pay for college. The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act will make our federal student loan program more cost-effective and efficient for those they were intended to serve: students and families working hard to pay for college. Specifically, the legislation will:

Create a more reliable, affordable, student-focused federal loan program by switching to all Direct Loans by 2010

  • Converts all new federal student lending to the stable, effective and cost-efficient Direct Loan program. Beginning July 1, 2010, all new federal student loans will be originated through the Direct Loan program, instead of through lenders subsidized by taxpayers in the federally-guaranteed student loan program. Unlike the lender-based program, the Direct Loan program is entirely insulated from market swings and can therefore guarantee students access to low-cost federal college loans, in any economy.
  • Provides students with low-cost federal college loans with the same interest rates, terms and conditions as loans made by lenders – and the peace of mind of knowing those loans will never disappear. Loans made through both the Direct Loan and the federally-guaranteed student loan programs carry an interest rate of 6.8 percent – a much more affordable interest rate than private loans carry. Under this legislation, federal student loan borrower will be able to borrow the same loans, at the same good rates as before – but these loans will be more cost-effective for taxpayers.  

Ensure that all student borrowers can benefit from high-quality, state-of-the-art customer service when repaying their loans

  • Upgrades the services all federal student loan borrowers receive. Rather than force private industry out of the system, the bill will forge a new public-private partnership that both maintains jobs and provides all borrowers with the highest-quality customer service when repaying their loans. It will establish a competitive bidding process that allows the U.S. Department of Education to select lenders based on how well they serve borrowers, provide financial literacy counseling, and prevent loan defaults. The legislation will also provide a role for non-profits to continue servicing student loans.
  • Preserves servicing jobs in communities across the country. Between this new public-private partnership and the more than $500 billion in outstanding federally-guaranteed student loans that will still need to be serviced, there will be tremendous demand for workers to continue providing great service to Americans repaying their loans.

Streamline financial aid operations for colleges and universities

  • College financial aid offices already have the infrastructure in place to administer Direct Loans. Schools will be able to operate these loans using the same on-site system currently used to administer Pell Grant scholarships; almost all schools participate in the program. Colleges and universities that have switched to Direct Loans, including those that converted in the midst of last year’s credit crisis, report that it was a fairly easy and inexpensive process. Currently about 1,700 schools participate in the Direct Loan program, including 500 colleges that switched in the past year alone. Under this bill about 4,500 colleges will need to switch to Direct Loans.

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SAFRA: Groundbreaking Community College Reforms

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:33 AM
A college degree continues to be the best pathway to the nation’s middle class. It’s also the best way to prepare our workers for the jobs of the future, to compete in a global marketplace, and to rebuild our economy so that it’s strong, innovative, and once again sets an example for the rest of the world. With more Americans than ever looking to go to college or return to school to get additional skills needed in new and emerging fields, community colleges have an increasingly important role to play in educating and training America’s workforce.

Just this week, President Obama set a new goal of graduating 5 million more Americans from community colleges by 2020. This legislation includes President Obama’s groundbreaking community college reforms that will help reach this goal and prepare students and workers for 21st century jobs by:

Creating a new Community College Challenge Grant Program that will transform community colleges into excellent education and job training centers

  • Build a 21st century workforce by encouraging historic partnerships between community colleges, businesses, job training and adult education programs. The bill will create a new competitive grant program for community colleges to improved instruction, work with local employers, improve their student support services, and implement other innovative reforms that will lead to a college degree, certificate or industry-recognized credential to fulfill local workforce needs. The Secretary of Education will be able to evaluate the effectiveness of all programs and policies funded through these grants by using 2 percent of these funds to commission the Institute for Education Sciences to conduct a rigorous study to help the Secretary determine which reforms may be replicated at other colleges and states.
  • Incentivize community colleges to achieve excellence by requiring them to meet benchmarks in order to participate in the challenge grant program. Under the program, the Secretaries of Education and Labor will award four-year grants to community colleges and other 2-year degree granting institutions on a competitive basis to support innovative pilot programs and policies. In order to continue to receive funding for year three of the grant period, community colleges must meet benchmarks they set in consultation with the Secretary of Education’s approval. Pilot programs and policies must also demonstrate that they can be replicated either in the state or nationwide. The minimum grant that can be awarded is $1 million. Funds can be used to carry at least two of the following activities:
  1. Facilitating transfer of credit articulation agreements;
  2. Expanding academic and training programs that provide relevant job-skill training for high-wage occupations in high-demand industries; 
  3. Improving student support services including those identified under the Workforce Investment Act; 
  4. Creating workforce programs that blend basic skills and occupational training leading to industry-recognized credentials; 
  5. Building and enhancing linkages including dual enrollment programs and early college high schools as well as improving remedial and adult education programs; and
  6. Implementing reform programs to increase completion rates and provision of training for students to enter high-wage occupations in high-demand industries.
  • Ensure that more students graduate with the expertise needed for high wage jobs and high-demand industries. Targets grants to high-need students and programs that focus on preparing students for jobs in fields that need workers and will continue to grow. The Secretaries would also be able to award six-year competitive grants to states to implement successful Challenge Grant Program reforms at other community and junior colleges within the state. Funding could be discontinued if the state does not make progress meeting benchmarks it develops with the Secretary by year three of the grant period.

Expanding access to education by supporting free, high-quality, online training, and high-school and college courses.

  • The U.S. Department of Education would be authorized to make competitive grants available to eligible colleges, workforce programs or other entities to help support the development of these courses.

Ensuring that Americans can learn in modern, updated, and state-of-the-art community college facilities.

  • Helps community colleges construct, renovate and repair their facilities by providing $2.5 billion, which will leverage additional funds, and ensures that funding is used for facilities that are primarily used for instruction, research, or student housing.
 

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SAFRA: Preparing the Next Generation for a Lifetime of Success

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:32 AM
A key piece of President’s Obama’s education agenda is supporting comprehensive and effective early learning programs for children from birth to age 5. The first five years of a child’s life has a lasting impact on their learning, health, and behavior. Economists, business leaders, and child development experts agree that smart investments in early education are vital if we want to close the achievement gap and ensure our children are well prepared to thrive in school and in life.

Nearly 12 million children under age 5 regularly spend time in child care arrangements and children with working mothers spend on average 36 hours per week in such settings. But currently there are no federal quality standards for child care and families are left with a patchwork system of child care with mediocre quality.  Our children deserve and need better.  By 4 years old, children from low-income families are already 18 months behind most other 4 year-olds.  From the start, education reform should include early learning, or we miss out on 5 critical years. A comprehensive range of high quality early learning opportunities from birth through age 5 is necessary to give children what they will need to grow and succeed.

To ensure more kids reach kindergarten ready to succeed, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act includes an Early Learning Challenge Fund to increase the number of low-income children in high quality early learning settings. Specifically, the legislation will:

Invest $1 billion each year in competitive grants to challenge states to build a comprehensive, high quality early learning system for children birth to age 5 that includes:   

  • Early learning standards reform.
  • Evidence-based program quality standards.
  • Enhanced program review and monitoring of program quality.
  • Comprehensive professional development.
  • Coordinated system for facilitating screenings for disability, health, and mental health needs. 
  • Improved support to parents.
  • Process for assessing children’s school readiness.
  • Use data to improve child outcomes.

Transform early learning programs by insisting upon real change in state standards and practices:

  • Build an effective, qualified, and well-compensated early childhood workforce by supporting more effective providers with degrees in early education and providing sustained, intensive, classroom-focused professional development to improve the knowledge and skills of early childhood providers
  • Best practices in the classroom by implementing research-based early learning standards aligned with academic content standards for grades K-3.
  • Promote parent and family involvement by developing outreach strategies to parents to improve their understanding of their children’s development.
  • Fund quality initiatives that improve instructional practices, programmatic practices, and classroom environment that promote school readiness.  
  • Quality standards reform that moves toward pre-service training requirements for early learning providers, and adopting best practices for teacher-child ratios and group size.

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SAFRA: What's In It For You?

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:31 AM
More Help Covering College Tuition and Expenses

  • Higher Pell Grant scholarship of $5,550 in 2010 and $6,900 in 2019.
About 6 million students received the Pell Grant scholarship in 2007-2008.
  • Lower interest rates on need-based (subsidized) federal student loans.
Nationwide about 5.5 million students borrow these loans each year.
  • More access to Perkins loan program by expanding it to every U.S. college campus.
Last year approximately 495,000 students received a Perkins Loan.
  • Shorter, simpler FAFSA form that makes applying for financial aid easier.
In 2003-2004, over 1.5 million college students who likely were eligible to receive Pell Grants didn’t apply for financial aid because they found the FAFSA form too confusing.

Better Opportunities to Prepare for Good Jobs

  • New college access and completion programs to help you stay in school and graduate.
  • Innovative partnerships between colleges, businesses and job training programs to help you get the real-world experience and skills you need to be ready for the jobs of the future.
  • Free, high-quality, online training and high school and college courses.

Financial Aid Programs That Are Worry-Free and Operate In Your Best Interest

  • Gives you the peace of mind of knowing that your federal student loans are stable.
  • Removes any potential for conflicts of interest between lenders and colleges.
  • Guarantees you the best customer service available when you repay your student loans.

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SAFRA: World-Class Learning Facilities For All Students

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 15, 2009 10:31 AM
School facilities should be safe and healthy learning environments for students. But according to recent estimates, America’s elementary and secondary schools, and community colleges are hundreds of billions of dollars short of the funding needed to bring them up to good condition. Poor learning conditions aren’t just bad for students’ health: research shows a correlation between facility quality and student achievement.

Modernizing school buildings will help revive our economy by creating jobs and preparing workers for the clean energy fields of the future. And by ensuring students can learn in modern, updated, renovated and safer environments, this legislation will help prepare future generations to compete in a 21st century global economy. Specifically, this legislation will:

Provide elementary and secondary schools and community colleges with access to funding for modernization, renovation and repair projects

    For K-12 schools:
  • Authorizes more than $4 billion for elementary and secondary school facility projects over the next two fiscal years, and ensures that school districts will receive funds for school modernization, renovation, and repairs that create healthier, safer, and more energy-efficient teaching and learning climates.
  • Allocates the same percentage of funds to school districts that they receive under Part A of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, except that it guarantees each such district a minimum of $5,000.

    • For Community Colleges:
  • Provides grants to states to help community colleges finance new construction, modernization, renovation, and repair projects.
  • Allows grant funds to be used to match private donations to a community college capital campaign.
Encourage energy efficiency and the use of renewable resources

  • Requires the majority of funds to be used for projects that meet green building standards. Allows states to reserve one percent of the elementary and secondary funding to administer the program, provide technical assistance, and to develop voluntary guidelines for high-performing school buildings.
  • Increases transparency by requiring school districts to publicly report the types of modernization, renovation, and repairs completed as well as the educational, energy and environmental benefits of such projects.
  • Brings innovative projects to scale by requiring the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, to disseminate best practices in school construction and to provide technical assistance to states and school districts.

Provide additional aid to Gulf Coast schools still recovering from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

  • Provides $60 million over two years for public elementary and secondary schools that were damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Many students still attend school in temporary classrooms.

Ensure fair wages and benefits for workers by applying Davis-Bacon protections to all grants for instructional facility modernization, renovation, and repair projects

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News of the Day: Fix loan system for a stronger future

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 15, 2009 10:30 AM
Chairman Miller has an op-ed in the Politico today about the plan to reform federal student loans.

Here it is in its entirety:

Fix loan system for a stronger future
By: Rep. George Miller

This summer, millions of students will sit down with their families to figure out how to pay for college. They will unwittingly enter into a financial lending system that is badly broken — and not benefiting them as intended.

However, if Congress and President Barack Obama are successful, this system is about to undergo a major change.

The college financing system that was supposed to ensure all students access to college is dangerously out of control, for three reasons.

First, tuition has skyrocketed and shows no signs of abating.

Second, the roller-coaster credit markets have put the federally guaranteed student loan program, which for years has originated almost three-quarters of all federal college loans, on life support.
And third, Pell Grants and other aid that a generation ago offered students about half of their tuition costs today cover only about 30 percent.

Over the past three years, the Democratic Congress has made great progress in restoring the scholarship’s purchasing power by increasing it by $1,500. But we’ve got to build on this success if we’re serious about reversing this trend for good.

The student loan market is changing quickly. Even a year ago, families could have confidence that lower-cost federal student loans, whether provided through the government or a private lender, were dependable. Today, it’s a very different story.

Taxpayers pay private companies to make loans, reimburse them if borrowers default and now even fund an emergency mechanism enacted last year to keep them afloat during the credit crisis. In short, taxpayers are pumping billions of dollars into a system that gives lenders all the rewards but none of the risks.

There is good reason that college affordability, next to health care and energy, is one of Obama’s top three domestic priorities.

We must fix this broken system — or risk jeopardizing the educational future of American families and our nation’s competitive future.

Our choice is clear: We can continue funneling taxpayer dollars through boardrooms, or we can start sending them directly to dorm rooms.

Today, after vigorous discussions with all key stakeholders, I am unveiling legislation to create a reliable, affordable and high-quality federal student-aid program that will revive the essential opportunity of a college education for all Americans.

This legislation will meet two crucial goals at once. It will help more students graduate with less debt by dramatically increasing grant aid and stabilizing student loans. And it will do this without costing taxpayers a dime: a pay-as-you-go college aid transformation.

First, this legislation will build on our commitment to strengthening the Pell Grant for low-income students. It will boost the maximum annual scholarship from $5,500 to $6,900 by 2019 by linking it to cost-of-living increases.

Second, it will keep interest rates down on loans for middle-class students. In 2012, interest rates on subsidized federal student loans will increase from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent. This bill will make these interest rates variable starting that year, keeping them low and affordable.

Third, it will pay for these investments and insulate all federal student loans from market swings by originating all new loans, starting in 2010, through a more stable option: the Direct Loan Program. Direct lending provides students with the same low-cost loans as lenders but at a fraction of the cost — and without the conflicts of interest that entangled lenders in recent years.

This simple change will save taxpayers almost $90 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The result will be a more dependable, efficient and cost-effective program for families and taxpayers.

Fourth, this bill will upgrade customer services for all federal loan borrowers. Rather than force private industry out of the system, we will forge a new public-private partnership that maintains jobs and provides all borrowers with high-quality services when repaying loans. It will establish a competitive bidding process, allowing lenders and nonprofits to keep doing what they do best: service loans. We’ll harness private-sector innovation for the public good.

Fifth, this legislation will deliver on new initiatives Obama has proposed to prepare students to compete in the jobs of the future. This includes making a game-changing $10 billion investment to turn our community colleges into job training and education vessels that will help drive a strong economic recovery.

Finally, this bill will help build a sound fiscal future for our children by also returning $10 billion to pay down our deficit.

All parents hope their children can receive the best education possible without being crippled by debt. To do this, we must transform our financial aid system from one that benefits banks over students into one that makes paying for college a better deal for families and taxpayers.

Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) is the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee.
To find out more about this proposed legislation, visit our blog post about the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.

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SAFRA: Myths vs. Facts

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 15, 2009 10:29 AM
The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act delivers on President Obama’s goal to expand affordable college opportunities for Americans by making historic investments in student financial aid and making federal college loans more stable and efficient – and all at no cost to taxpayers.

Not surprisingly, critics are using scare tactics to try to mislead the American public about this effort. They’re desperate to preserve the status quo – a system that for too long has favored banks at the expense of students and taxpayers.
MYTH: This is another back-door government takeover of the student loan industry.

It’s ridiculous to argue this is a government takeover, when the federal student loan programs are already a federal program, established and subsidized by the federal government. The Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) now depends on taxpayer dollars not just for subsidies that reimburse lenders when borrowers default on loans, but also for the capital to finance their lending activity altogether. Taxpayers now fund 6 of every 10 dollars in federal student lending activity. They absorb all the risk. There’s simply no reason to keep pumping taxpayer dollars into a broken system when the federal government can provide the same low-cost federal loans more reliably for students and at a lower cost for taxpayers. Under this bill, this federal program will continue to be a federal program, as it always has been, and private industry will continue to have a role, but one that is more effective and cost-efficient for families and taxpayers. 
 
MYTH: Student lenders aren’t the only industry facing credit market troubles. Why should they be treated any differently from mortgage lenders or auto companies?
 
It’s misleading to compare the student loan industry to the auto industry or the mortgage industry. The structure of the federal student loan programs has always guaranteed private lenders a taxpayer subsidy above the cost of making loans – a benefit that auto companies or mortgage lenders don’t enjoy. If someone buys a $20,000 car, we don’t pay the automaker $24,000. Federal student loans, and the decisions made about them, have always been a part of our larger federal financial aid system. It’s a different industry, with a different purpose, than other consumer credit industries. Ensuring that students have access to low-cost, reliable federal college loans is directly tied to our ability to build a stronger, competitive workforce and economic future.
 
MYTH: This bill will only add to the federal budget deficit at a time when we can least afford it.
 
Wrong. This legislation will actually help us pay down the deficit. According to the Congressional Budget Office, this bill will save $87 billion over 10 years. In addition to increasing grant aid, reducing interest rates on student loans and funding other benefits for students, this bill will direct $10 billion in savings to the U.S. Treasury to reduce our deficit. It’s an investment in a stronger economy and a stronger fiscal future.

MYTH: This legislation will drive competition out of the student loan marketplace – hurting students and families.
 
What will hurt students is not having access to low-cost, reliable federal loans to help pay for college. The financial crisis has already caused many lenders to leave the federal student loan programs, leaving many students in a bind. The Direct Loan program provides the same low-cost loans to students as FFELP, with the added benefit of complete reliability, even in an economic crisis. And the bill will foster competition among lenders by allowing private companies to compete for bids to service these loans – ensuring that contracts are awarded to lenders who offer the best customer service and innovations for borrowers. This is competition that will help students and build on the best of what private industry can offer to borrowers.
 
MYTH: This is nothing but a redistribution of wealth. Why should we finance grant aid increases for the poorest students at the expense of the middle class?
 
Both low-income and middle-class students will benefit from this legislation. Despite recent investments made by President Obama and the Democratic Congress, the Pell Grant scholarship, today only covers about 30 percent of average college tuition and fees – down 20 percent from twenty years ago. In addition to boosting the Pell Grant for low- and moderate-income students, this legislation will also keep interest rates low on college loans for middle-class students, support programs that help students stay in school and graduate and expand access to campus-based aid. This will not only make college more affordable for students while they’re in school, but will also help reduce college debt after graduation – a strategy that can help improve purchasing power of the Pell Grant and strengthen our economy over time.
 
MYTH: Big government is too bureaucratic to run student loans. Services for families will suffer; they may not even get phone calls returned.

The federal government has already proven that it can originate loans more efficiently and reliably than private lenders. Where private lenders have excelled is in servicing loans to students – meaning ensuring that borrowers pay back loans on time, providing financial literacy, and helping prevent loan defaults. This legislation builds on the best of what works in the current system by creating a new public-private partnership that will allow lenders to compete for contracts to service Direct Loans. The bill will also ensure that smaller state non-profit lenders can keep servicing loans. Borrowers will receive only the best customer service, and jobs will be maintained in communities across the country.
 
MYTH: It will cost colleges and universities already facing deep budget crises millions to switch to direct lending – leading to more tuition hikes for families.
 
This is nothing more than a myth cooked up by critics to scare colleges; there is simply no evidence to back this up. Colleges and universities that have switched to Direct Loans, including those that converted in the midst of last year’s credit crisis, report that it was a fairly easy and inexpensive process, in part because schools are able use the same on-site system currently used to administer Pell Grant scholarships.  Penn State, for example, did not have to hire extra staff or increase its budget during this switch last spring.
 
MYTH: Cutting lenders out will lead to massive job losses in an already devastated economy.
 
While this legislation will trim the profits of CEOs and big banks, it will not lead to enormous jobs losses. By maintaining a servicing role for both large and smaller lenders, this bill will preserve jobs and, unlike in the FFELP program, keep them from being shipped overseas.
 
MYTH: The Direct Loan program will not be able to handle this increased capacity.
 
Colleges and universities that already participate in the Direct Loan program have found it easier to administer, simpler for students and parents, and faster at originating and disbursing loans than FFELP. If this legislation passes on schedule, the U.S. Department of Education will have almost a year to prepare for this increased capacity.
 
MYTH: The Direct Loan program doesn’t prevent student loan defaults as well as the federally-guaranteed student loan program does.
 
Recent preliminary data released by the U.S. Department of Education shows that in 2007, default rates were lower in the Direct Loan program than in FFELP.  By allowing private lenders to service these loans through a competitive process, which will include default prevention strategies, this bill will ensure that more borrowers can receive service from lenders that have been effective in keeping default rates low. 

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Rep. Hare speaks about the new income-based repayment college loan program

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 6, 2009 10:00 AM
The PJ Star has an article about the new benefits for graduates and students with federal loans that quotes Rep. Phil Hare (D-IL):

"This program will provide much-needed relief to Illinois students and families who are already struggling in this tough economy," said U.S. Rep. Phil Hare, D-Rock Island, who approved the legislation. "We should be rewarding those who pursue a higher education, not crippling them with debt. When the best and the brightest students can afford to go to college, we all benefit."

Learn more about the College Cost Reduction and Access Act and read other blog posts highlighting the many benefits.

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News of the Day: Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program

By
Kruger, Mike
 on July 2, 2009 10:00 AM
While highlighting some of the other benefits that started yesterday, both the Washington Post and the Daily Texan pay specific attention to the public service loan forgiveness program under the College Cost and Reduction and Access Act.

The Washington Post explains how this benefit works:

Under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, the Obama administration announced yesterday [although this provision was enacted 2 years ago by Congress], people with student loans can have their debts erased after 10 years of public service. Let's say Dr. Feelgood graduates from medical school with a mountain of student loan debt. Her heart, and a little angel on one shoulder, tell her to work in a clinic serving a low-income community on tribal lands, but that little devil on her other shoulder says to become a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills. And the little devil is holding her empty pocketbook as evidence to back his case.

If the doctor follows her heart and makes 120 payments -- one a month for 10 years -- on her student loan, Uncle Sam will tell her to forget the rest of the money she owes.
and the Daily Texan speaks to a student who will benefit from the new provision because she is entering public service.

Elisheba Evans, a former UT English student who transferred to the University of North Texas, is paying off her UT-Austin student loans.

She said the program’s forgiveness clause will benefit her in her career choice as a science teacher.

“It’s good that there is a system in place to reward people going into [public service] because you aren’t making that much at all,” Evans said.
Learn more about public service loan forgiveness (pdf) and read other blog posts on the benefits from the College Cost Reduction and Access Act.

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New Benefits Make Student Loan Repayment More Manageable and Affordable for Millions

By
Chairman George Miller
 on July 1, 2009 9:30 AM | Comments (2)
Today new benefits go into effect that will make monthly student loan payments more manageable and affordable for millions of students and borrowers struggling to stay afloat in this tough economic climate.

These benefits were enacted as part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, a law I sponsored in 2007 that made historic investments to help more Americans earn a college degree. With the economy against this year’s college graduates, this relief couldn’t come at a better time.
First, a new Income-Based Repayment program takes effect that allows borrowers to cap their monthly loan payments at just 15 percent of their income, based on their family size. Any current or future borrower whose student loan payment exceeds 15 percent of their discretionary income is eligible. After 25 years in the program, borrowers’ remaining student loan debts will be completely forgiven.

Take for example, a recent graduate with $30,000 in federal student loans and a starting salary of $25,000. Under an Income-Based Repayment plan, this borrower’s monthly loan payment would be reduced to $110 a month – a third of the $345 they would be required to pay under a standard 10-year repayment plan.

Second, the interest rate on subsidized – or need-based – federal student loans also drops today, from 6 percent to 5.6 percent. Anyone taking a loan after today will benefit, meaning that for millions of students and families sitting down to plan for this fall’s expenses, they’ll have a lower, more affordable interest rate locked in for the life of their loan. This is the second annual cut in these interest rates; they will continue to decrease until they reach 3.4 percent in 2011.

Third, our nation’s neediest students will be able to receive a Pell Grant scholarship of $5,350 this fall that will cover a much larger share of their college expenses than year’s past, a $600 increase above last year’s award. A generation ago the Pell Grant covered about half of a student’s tuition expenses; thirty years later, the purchasing power of the scholarship has dramatically declined.

Finally, for the surge of Americans interested in public service, a recently-established program exists to make it easier for workers with hefty debt loans to go into critically-needed, but typically lower-paying fields. Under this public service loan forgiveness program, workers who work in public sector fields – like teaching, nursing, public interest law, non-profit work, and more – will see their federal student loans completely forgiven after 10 years of service and loan repayments.

This good news is long overdue for students, their families – and especially for this year’s graduates.

In previous years, students could borrow for college with the assurance that a steady salary awaited them upon graduation. Unfortunately, in this economy, that same cushion doesn’t exist.

At 2.3 million, the class of 2009 is the largest class to graduate college to date – into the toughest job market for young workers in 25 years.  In May, unemployment among 20-24 year olds topped 15 percent – up from 9 percent a year ago. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, just 20 percent of 2009 graduates who applied for a job have one – that’s a thirty percent decrease from two years ago.

These graduates are entering this economy with plenty of financial baggage already in tow. The typical student now borrows about $22,000 in federal and private student loans to pay for college. Many borrowers already spend high percentages of their paychecks making student loan payments, especially in expensive cities across the country, where juggling student loan payments with rent, utility bills and other basic expenses can be daunting.

These new benefits will give borrowers a much-needed lifeboat.

The Income Based Repayment and loan forgiveness programs will alleviate some of the stress working families feel when repaying their loans and will empower Americans to go into critical public service jobs – allowing them to keep their primary focus on their interests, not their outstanding loan balances.

In this economy, every little bit of help counts. For the class of 2009, these benefits may be just the graduation gift they’ve been waiting for.

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News of the Day: New Plan Ties Reduced College Loan Payments to Income

By
Kruger, Mike
 on June 30, 2009 11:46 AM
Jonathan Glater has an article in today's New York Times about the good news for college students and graduates starting on July 1st. The new benefits include lower interest rates on federally student loans and an option to lower monthly payments based upon one's income (see video below).

“These benefits are guaranteed, no matter what happens in our economy, and are kicking in at exactly the right time for millions of Americans,” said Representative George Miller, Democrat of California and chairman of the House education committee.

See Chairman Miller's complete statement here.


Source: IBRinfo.org

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News of the Day: Simplifying college aid

By
Kruger, Mike
 on June 26, 2009 10:00 AM | Comments (1)
Today's Bangor Daily News has an excellent editorial about the Obama administrations efforts to simply the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form. Some changes will be immediate, while others will be phased in over the next several years. Rather than wait weeks, students will now be able to see estimates of Pell Grant and other student loan eligibility immediately. The number of questions will be reduced by about 20% to 150 and starting in January, for students who choose, they will be able to import relevant tax information from the IRS.

“Confusing paperwork shouldn’t stand between qualified students and a college degree,” said Rep. George Miller, a California Democrat who is chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor. A law passed last year helped, creating a two-page form for some low-income families.

We encourage you to read the entire editorial and to learn from the Department of Education.

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News of the Day: New repayment option on student loans

By
Kruger, Mike
 on June 17, 2009 10:00 AM
The Boston Globe's personal finance reporter, Jill Boynton, has a concise article about the new benefits for students with federal college loans that start on July 1, 2009.

But what if you have a job, but not a lot of income? Under the Income-Based Repayment plan (IBR) your payments are capped to no more than 15% of discretionary income, an amount that is based on the federal poverty guideline. "Discretionary income" is defined as the difference between adjusted gross income and 150 percent of the federal poverty line that corresponds to your family size and the state you live in (from www.finaid.org).

These new options apply to the Stafford, Grad Plus and federal consolidated loans and your loans must be in good standing. If you are unemployed, you can apply for a deferment of up to 3 years. Read the entire article and visit www.ibrinfo.org to learn more about the income-based repayment plan.

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News of the Day: Grads May Soon Repay Student Loans Based On Income

By
Kruger, Mike
 on June 2, 2009 5:00 PM
David Randall at Forbes.com has an article about the new Income-Based Repayment benefit that begins July 1st under the College Cost Reduction and Access Act. He explains how it will work:

First, income-based repayment will only be available for federal student loans that are in good standing. Under this plan, borrowers' monthly payments will be capped at 15% of the amount by which their income exceeds the federal poverty level (currently $16,245).

Let's say you have an adjusted gross income of $30,000. That means your pay exceeds the federal poverty level by $13,755 a year, or $1,146.25 a month. Under the new program, you would owe 15% of that amount, or $171.94, per month, regardless of your total outstanding loan balance.

If you left school owing $40,000 in federal loans, you would pay $460.32 a month under the standard 10-year plan. By choosing the income-based repayment plan, you would save 63% per month (by lengthening the life of the loan, however, you will end up paying more in interest over time.)
There are additional circumstances for married couples filing jointly, students in deferment, and medical students to consider. We encourage you to read the entire article (and use their cool income-based repayment calculator to see your potential monthly savings).

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News of the Day: When Sallie Met Barack

By
Kruger, Mike
 on May 28, 2009 9:30 AM
An op-ed by Gail Collins in today's New York Times discusses the need to reform student loans. After looking at the private loan sector, she then turns to the federally-guaranteed loans:

This is a system that goes something like this:

  • We the taxpayers pay the banks to make loans to students.
  • We the taxpayers then guarantee the loans so the banks won’t lose money if the students don’t pay.
  • We the taxpayers then buy back the loans from the banks so they can make more loans to students, for which we will then pay them more rewards.
Are you with me so far? Wait, I see a hand waving back there. What’s that, sir? You want to know why the government doesn’t just lend the money out itself? Excellent question!

The White House estimates that it could save about $94 billion over 10 years if it cut out all the middlemen. And it has the basis of a system in place, since the Department of Education already makes a lot of direct loans to students.
We encourage you to learn more about the President's proposal, read the entire editorial and review the highlights from our recent hearing on this subject.

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Rep. Tim Bishop: On July 1, New Benefits Will Make College More Affordable

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on May 20, 2009 11:37 AM
(This is a guest blog post by Rep. Tim Bishop, Education and Labor Committee Member.)

bishop-headshot-square.jpgAn article in Newsday recently declared that the “recession is pushing college out of reach.” That’s a sobering thought—particularly because a college education can be a key path to a stronger financial future for many Americans.

Current statistics on costs at local colleges and universities help explain why this is the case. At Stony Brook University on Long Island, the average debt incurred by 2007 graduates had increased by 9% over the previous year. That’s nearly three times the annual cost of living adjustment. Completing college in New York or any other state is an increasingly expensive proposition: the average student graduates with nearly $22,000 in debt. With the current economic downturn, a college degree may appear even further out of reach for many Americans.

As a former college administrator, I understand the importance of college affordability for American students. I am heartened by the steps that President Obama and my Congressional colleagues have taken to date, including the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. This legislation includes billions of dollars to repair and construct school facilities and improve services for the children most in need, which will better prepare our next generation for the challenges of college and the globalized economy.

On July 1st, some new benefits for students will go into effect thanks to the College Cost Reduction and Access Act. On July 1, the interest rate on need-based federal student loans will be reduced to 5.6% down from the current 6% (rates will drop even further to 3.4% by 2011). The maximum Pell Grant scholarship will increase to $5,350 which will reduce the amount that students need to borrow in the first place. In addition, monthly loan payments may be capped at 15% of discretionary income, so student loans will become less of a burden on young people getting started in their careers.

Alex, a student on Long Island who will graduate with a whopping $70,000 in debt, puts it well: “Higher education shouldn’t come at the price of indebtedness for life.”

That’s a goal for our college graduates on which I hope we all can agree.

We can get there by increasing grant aid from all sources (federal, state, and institutional), making it less expensive for students and families to borrow, and working with institutions to implement best practices to hold down costs.

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News of the Day: Hope for grads deep in debt

By
Kruger, Mike
 on May 18, 2009 11:27 AM
In today's Chicago Sun-Times, Terry Savage's Savage Truth column brings great news for recent college graduates.

Starting July 1, there will be new help for recent grads -- or those who have been out of school for a while and are struggling to repay student loans. The new federal Income-Based Repayment program will allow those with low incomes to pay as little as zero on their student loans, as long as they qualify based on income and amount of debt.
The rules are a little complicated, but you can visit www.IBRinfo.org. to use their online calculator to see if you are eligible.

Additional benefits that start on July 1 from the College Cost Reduction and Access Act include:
  • increase in Pell Grants
  • reduction in interest rates on federal loans from 6.0% to 5.6%
  • TEACH grants for qualified undergraduate students who commit to teaching in public schools in high-poverty communities or high-need subject areas.
  • Loan forgiveness after 10 years for public servants
We encourage you to read Ms. Savage's entire column and visiting our page on the College Cost Reduction and Access Act for more information.

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This Week: Hearings on Seclusion & Restraint in Schools, Obama's Education Agenda, and Reforming Student Aid

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on May 18, 2009 10:48 AM | Comments (3)
On Tuesday, May 19, the House Committee on Education and Labor will hold a hearing to examine abusive and deadly uses of seclusion and restraint in U.S. schools. Seclusion and restraint are physical interventions used by teachers and other school staff to prevent students from hurting themselves or others.

On Wednesday, May 20, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan will testify before the House Education and Labor Committee about President Obama’s agenda for transforming American education. This will mark Secretary’s first appearance on Capitol Hill to outline the President’s education goals.

On Thursday, May 21, the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing to examine proposals that will make historic increases in college aid by enacting reforms that will make the nation’s federal student loan programs more reliable, effective and efficient for students, families and taxpayers.

One of the proposals the committee will examine is President Obama’s FY 2010 budget proposal, which would increase the Pell Grant scholarship and other forms of student aid by almost $100 billion over ten years – and at no cost to taxpayers. The President’s plan would be paid for by ending the subsidies the federal government currently pays to lenders in the federally-guaranteed student loan programs and re-directing those savings back into additional aid for low- and middle-income students.

Committee to Examine Proposals for Increasing College Aid through Reform of Student Loan Program

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on May 14, 2009 6:00 PM
On Thursday, May 21, the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing to examine proposals that will make historic increases in college aid by enacting reforms that will make the nation’s federal student loan programs more reliable, effective and efficient for students, families and taxpayers.

One of the proposals the committee will examine is President Obama’s FY 2010 budget proposal, which would increase the Pell Grant scholarship and other forms of student aid by almost $100 billion over ten years – and at no cost to taxpayers. The President’s plan would be paid for by ending the subsidies the federal government currently pays to lenders in the federally-guaranteed student loan programs and re-directing those savings back into additional aid for low- and middle-income students.

WHAT:         
Hearing on “Increasing Student Aid through Loan Reform”

WHO:           
Witnesses TBA

WHEN:         
Thursday, May 21, 2009
10:00 a.m. ET
Please check the Committee schedule for potential updates »

WHERE:      
House Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room
2175 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C.


Managing Your Student Loans: July 1 College Affordability Benefits Every Borrower Should Know About

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on May 14, 2009 1:39 PM
The cost of paying for college is becoming even more burdensome for Americans in this economy. While families are losing income, benefits and jobs, college tuition prices continue to rise. The average student now graduates with over $22,000 in total student debt, including federal and private student loans.

This year’s class of graduating college seniors also enters one of the toughest jobs markets in decades for recent graduates. Of the 1.2 million jobs lost last year, 60 percent were held by workers aged 25 or younger. Their wages may also suffer: Economists have found that workers who graduated during recessions typically earn less over a lifetime than workers who graduate in better economic times. Many borrowers already spend high percentages of their paychecks making student loan payments – and it’s only likely to get worse.

Given these challenges, it’s critical for current college students, new or soon-to-be graduates, and workers to know about new benefits that went into effect July 1, 2009 that will make student loan payments manageable for millions of Americans. (These benefits were signed into law in 2007 as part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act.) They include:

  • Cheaper interest rates on need-based (subsidized) federal student loans. On July 1, the interest rates on subsidized federal student loans decreased from 6 percent to 5.6 percent. This is the second of four annual cuts in this interest rate; it will continue to drop until it reaches 3.4 percent in 2011.

  • Reasonable and affordable monthly college loan payments for borrowers. On July 1, a new Income-Based Repayment program went into effect that caps borrowers’ monthly loan payments at just 15 percent of their discretionary income (15 percent of what a borrower earns above 150 percent of the poverty level for their family size). Any current or future borrower whose loan payment exceeds 15 percent of their discretionary income is eligible. After 25 years in the program, borrowers’ debts will be completely forgiven.

  • Higher Pell Grant scholarships that cover the average tuition at public universities. Due to funding provided by both the College Cost Reduction and Access Act and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the maximum Pell Grant scholarship for the 2009-2010 school year will be $5,350 – more than $600 above last year’s award.

In addition, students and borrowers will be able to continue to take advantage of other recent programs enacted under the law that will make it easier for graduates to go into public service fields while grappling with student debt. To encourage more students to become teachers, the law provides up-front tuition assistance, known as TEACH Grants, of $4,000 a year – for a maximum of $16,000 – to students who commit to teaching high need subject areas in high need schools for four years after graduation. (These grants first went into effect for the 2008-2009 school year).

Recent surveys also show students’ interest in public service jobs is surging. Graduates who enter into public service careers, such as teachers, public defenders and prosecutors, firefighters, nurses, non-profit workers and more, will be eligible for complete loan forgiveness after 10 years of qualifying public service and loan payments. (This program began on October 1, 2007.)

 
WHO BENEFITS? A SNAPSHOT…

The interest rate cut…

  • Nationwide, about 5.5 million students borrow need-based federal student loans each year. According to the Congressional Research Service, half of these borrowers come from families with incomes between $26,000-68,000.
  • About 38 percent of African-American students take out need-based student loans each year.
  • About 25 percent of Hispanic students take out need-based student loans each year.

The Income-Based Repayment program…

  • While it’s difficult to estimate an approximate number of borrowers who could participate, at the end of 2008, there were almost $556 billion in outstanding federal loans, representing almost 95 million student loans to more than 30 million borrowers. In 2008, about 8.9 million students borrowed federal loans.

The Pell Grant scholarship…

  • About 6 million students received the Pell Grant scholarship for the 2007-2008 school year. Of these students, 75 percent had family incomes below $30,000.
  • About 47 percent of all African-American students receive Pell Grant scholarships each year.
  • About 37 percent of Hispanic students receive the Pell Grant scholarship each year.

WHO QUALIFIES FOR INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT?

  • Borrowers who currently are paying back federal student loans and new borrowers, whose debt exceeds 15 percent of their discretionary income. Borrowers with hefty debt loads or low-paying jobs are most likely to qualify.
  • The program covers all federal loans – both Direct and Federal Family Education loans – made to students, including Stafford, Grad PLUS and federal consolidation loans, but not those made to parents (PLUS loans). Perkins loans are also eligible if a borrower consolidates them into a FFEL or Direct Loan. 
  • A borrower must also have enough debt relative to their income to qualify for a reduced payment. If a borrower earns below 150 percent of their poverty level for their family size, their payment will be $0. If they earn above it, their payment will be capped at 15 percent of whatever their income is over that amount. 
Tips on how to apply for federal student loans and grants »

News of the Day: College Affordability

By
Kruger, Mike
 on May 8, 2009 11:00 AM
President Obama has challenged every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. And today he made it easier by ensuring that those receiving unemployment benefits won't lose them if they return to school. (from the AP article)

Currently, people who are out of work and want to go back to school have to give up their monthly unemployment check. And if they decide to return to school, they often don't qualify for federal grants because eligibility is based upon the previous year's income.
In addition to making it easier for those out of work to return for additional training, President Obama has been pushing for a transformation of the federal loan program to save taxpayers money and ensure stability for students. This USA Today editorial explains why this reform is important.

The student lending market is far smaller than the housing market. But it raises a similar question: Does it make sense for the government to pump its education dollars through banks — which divert some of the money for their own profits, wine and dine college financial aid officers to get on "preferred lender" lists, and lobby Washington to keep the spigot open?

The administration estimates it can save as much as $94 billion over 10 years by eliminating middlemen and lending directly. Even if that number is exaggerated, it reflects how inefficiently taxpayers' money is being spent. Banks shouldn't need major subsidies to issue guaranteed student loans.

To learn more about President Obama's proposal click here.

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News of the Day: Goal Is College. Hurdle Is Finding Financial Aid.

By
Kruger, Mike
 on May 1, 2009 3:45 PM
In today's paper, the New York Times has an article about the difficulty of paying for college. It follows Brennan Jackson, an A-student who ranks near the top of his high school class, as he tries to raise the $25,000 he still needs for his freshman year at the University of California, Berkeley, by stitching together a quilt of merit scholarships.

While Brennan’s situation, and the remedy he is pursuing, may sound extremely ambitious, guidance counselors across the country say they can recall no prior year in which so many applicants’ families have been squeezed by so many financial pressures.

Not only have families’ incomes been falling as their savings have dwindled, but also tuition has been rising — including proposed increases of nearly 10 percent next year throughout the University of California system....

Interest rates on student loans, including on popular federal programs like the unsubsidized Stafford (now nearly 7 percent) and Parent Plus (8.5 percent), are running several percentage points higher than the rates on secured loans, like home equity lines of credit.

“The difference of rates between secured and unsecured loans is higher than I have ever seen,” said Scott White, director of counseling services at Westfield High School in New Jersey. “This is one further impediment to access to post-secondary education for all but the well-to-do.”
President Obama has put forth a solid plan to make federal student loans more reliable, while saving taxpayers billions of dollars. To learn about the President's proposal, click here.

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News of the Day: Chairman Miller talks with the New Republic

By
Kruger, Mike
 on April 24, 2009 4:44 PM
Chairman Miller on making college more affordable.



Will Congress pass Obama's student loan plan?

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News of the Day: Serve students, not banks

By
Kruger, Mike
 on April 17, 2009 10:41 AM
In today's News of the Day, the San Francisco Chronicle has an editorial about the importance for reform in the student loan industry. They say "one of the most sensible proposals in President Obama's budget would end federal subsidies for private lenders in favor of direct government loans."  And they take on several of the complaints about President Obama's proposal. For instance,

This proposal would not threaten private lenders' ability to make private loans to college students at unregulated (and often highly profitable) interest rates. It would simply allow the federal government to keep the profits from loans it already subsidizes, instead of handing them over to banks. It would improve efficiency and save money, and it should have been passed a long time ago.

And there is more at the San Francisco Chronicle and we encourage you to read the entire editorial.

To learn more about where Chairman Miller stands on this proposal, see his statement on President Obama's budget.

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News of the Day: The Battle Over Student Lending

By
Kruger, Mike
 on April 16, 2009 9:57 AM
In today's New York Times, the editorial board declared, "The direct-lending proposal is clearly in the country’s best interest."

Private companies that reap undeserved profits from the federal student-loan program are gearing up to kill a White House plan that would get them off the dole and redirect the savings to federal scholarships for the needy. Instead of knuckling under to the powerful lending lobby, as it has so often done in the past, Congress needs to finally put the taxpayers’ interests first. That means embracing President Obama’s plan.

This builds upon Rep. Miller and the Education and Labor Committee's efforts in the 110th Congress.

We encourage you to read the entire editorial. And these from the Syracuse Post-Standard and the Albany Times Union.

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News of the Day: Get a job, ditch your student loans

By
Kruger, Mike
 on April 15, 2009 10:41 AM | Comments (1)
Today's university graduates are faced with a tough job market and thousands of dollars in loans to repay. This often makes choosing to work in traditionally low-paying fields such as public service a tough decision. However, under the College Cost Reduction Act, graduates can reduce or eliminate their loans by entering into a career in the military, volunteering, teaching or practicing law or medicine in low-income communities.

CNN Money has an article about how specific provisions in the College Cost Reduction Act of 2007 can help recent graduates.

Under the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, two federal loan forgiveness programs could provide greater assistance to those who decide to pursue careers that serve the public. Income-Based Repayment (IBR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) could make student loan forgiveness much more accessible to the masses.

"Both of these programs are much more widely available than anything that's been available in the past," says Irons.
We encourage you to read the entire article to learn more about the two provisions, as well as visit the Department of Labor's website for the IBR and PSLF provisions.

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News of the Day: NY Times editorial - "Helping Students, Not Lenders"

By
Kruger, Mike
 on March 4, 2009 4:51 PM
The New York Times published an editorial this morning entitled Helping Students, Not Lenders. They highlight President Obama's efforts to save taxpayers $47.5 billion over ten years and make loans more dependable for students.

The budget rightly calls for phasing out the wasteful and all-too-corruptible portion of the student program that relies on private lenders. And it calls for expanding the less-expensive and more-efficient program that allows students to borrow directly from the federal government. That means doing away with the Federal Family Education Loan Program, under which private lenders receive unnecessary subsidies to make risk-free student loans that are guaranteed by taxpayers.

This builds upon Rep. Miller and the Education and Labor Committee's efforts in the 110th Congress.

We encourage you to read the entire editorial.

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The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: Making College More Affordable (Updated 2.12.09)

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on February 12, 2009 6:39 PM
Building a Strong, Competitive 21st Century Economy

A well-trained, college-educated workforce is key to a strong American economy and middle class. The economic crisis, combined with rising tuition prices and declining state support for higher education, threatens to put college out of reach for many students – forcing them to take a semester off or even skip college. Allowing students to be priced out of a college education will only further weaken our workforce and our economy. Economists, the business community, scientists and others agree that making strategic investments in education is a smart move to grow our economy and regain our competitive edge in the 21st century global economy.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will help college students and families pay for college by significantly boosting federal student aid. It builds on the groundwork laid by the 110th Congress to make college more affordable and accessible for all qualified students. The legislation will:

Boost the Pell Grant scholarship to its highest amount ever

  • Increase the maximum Pell Grant Award by $500 to $5,350 for 2009-2010 and to $5,550 for 2010-2011. When combined with other increases enacted during the 110th Congress, the maximum Pell Grant award will have increased by $1,500 – or 37 percent – since the 2006 – 2007 school year; 
  • College and universities create jobs, support taxes and generate spending on goods and services. Increasing the Pell Grant scholarship will help more students stay in college, and more new students enroll in college – which in turn will help colleges and universities keep more jobs on the payroll and continue to serve as local economic engines.

Expand Work Study and Service Opportunities for Students

  • Provide $200 million for work-study programs to create opportunities for an additional 133,000 students to get paid for work in a field related to either their major or community service.
 
Stabilize State Budgets for Higher Education

  • Provide funding for postsecondary education through the State Stabilization Fund which will allow states to, among other options, retain or hire faculty and staff, maintain or expand enrollment, repair, renovate and modernize campus facilities,  and pay for other costs associated with the evolving needs of higher education in the current economy.

Pell Grants Helping More Students Pay for College

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on October 29, 2008 12:30 PM
More students than ever before are receiving Pell Grants to help pay for college and that number is on the rise, according to a new report released today by the College Board. The study also shows that, with college costs rising, students are continuing to access the federal student loans for which they are eligible. Over the past year, the average tuition and fees for in-state students at four-year public colleges and universities increased by 6.4 percent to $6,585 for the 2008-2009 school year.



"With college costs still rising and families facing growing uncertainty in today's economy, federal student aid is more important than ever," Chairman George Miller said.  "Over the past two years, the Democratic Congress has made college affordability a top priority -- providing historic investments in federal student aid and safeguarding federal student loans from the turbulence in the nation's financial markets. This study reinforces that these efforts are critically needed to help make college more affordable and accessible for students and their families.

"This report also shows that the Pell Grant scholarship -- which Congress has significantly boosted in the past two years --  is playing an increasingly important role in expanding college access, especially for low- and middle-income students. As we work to get our economy back on the road to recovery, it is vital to make sure that students are aware of all their student aid options and are fully maximizing their federal student loans before turning to more expensive private loans."

According to the report, the number of students receiving almost all federal grants and loans have increased over the last ten years and the number of students receiving Pell Grant scholarships has increased from 3.7 million in 1997-98 to 5.4 million in 2007-2008.

Last year, Congress enacted the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, which provides the largest increase in student financial aid since the GI bill. The law increases the maximum Pell Grant scholarship by more than $1,000, cuts interest rates on need-based student loans in half, creates income based repayment programs for students graduating with college debt and gives loan forgiveness incentive programs for public service workers.

Congress also recently enacted the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act to ensure that students and families can continue to have access to all the federal college loans they are eligible for.

In August, Congress enacted the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the first reauthorization of the nation's primary higher education laws in a decade. The law addresses rising college tuition prices, makes textbook costs more manageable, simplifies the federal student aid application process, makes the Pell Grant scholarship available year-round for the first time, provides new consumer protections for federal and private student loan borrowers, and much more.

House Votes to Extend Student Loan Access Protections at No Cost to Taxpayers

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on September 16, 2008 2:22 PM
The House of Representatives yesterday approved bipartisan legislation to further ensure that turmoil in the U.S. credit markets will not prevent students and families from accessing the financial aid they need to pay for college. The legislation extends for one year certain provisions of the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008, which were due to expire on July 1, 2009.
The House overwhelmingly passed the bill, H.R. 6889, by a vote of 368 to 4. Specifically, the legislation would extend provisions that provide the U.S. Secretary of Education with the additional tools needed to safeguard federal student loans by purchasing loans from lenders in the federal student loan programs in the event that those lenders were unable to access the capital needed to finance their lending activity. Like the original legislation, this bill carries no new cost for taxpayers.

H.R. 6889 would extend, for one year:
  • The temporary authority given to the U.S. Education Secretary to purchase loans from lenders in the federally guaranteed loan program, ensuring that lenders continue to have access to capital to originate new loans, if there was a determination that lenders were unable to meet demand for loans. The Education Department would be authorized to purchase loans only if doing so would not result in a net cost for the federal government; and
  • The authority to allow guaranty agencies to carry out the functions of lenders of last resort on a school-wide basis. Under existing law, these guaranty agencies are obligated to serve as lenders of last resort to prevent any possible problem in access to student loans.
Last spring, Congress first passed the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008, after turmoil in the nation’s credit markets made it difficult for some lenders that participate in the federally guaranteed student loan program to secure the capital needed to finance their student lending activity.

“At a time when our rough economy is already dealing a huge blow to American families, we can’t allow trouble in the credit markets to further price students out of a college degree.  With market turbulence showing no signs of letting up, it’s only prudent to make sure that students have every assurance that the federal student loans they need will be there next year.” -- Chairman George Miller

“Come spring, students and families will be making their plans for the next academic year.   It is critical that we extend the authority for the Secretary to purchase student loans to avoid any uncertainty about the access to this critical source of student financial aid.  “It would be a tragedy for a student to decide to forgo or postpone college because of a fear of not being able to get a federal student loan.” -- Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Competitiveness
 

Higher Education Opportunity Act Signed Into Law

By
Chairman George Miller
 on August 14, 2008 11:37 AM
The Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 was signed into law today.  The law, passed by the House on July 31 by a vote of 380-49, is the first reauthorization of the nation’s primary higher education laws in a decade.
Today is truly a momentous day for America’s current and future college students and families. Over the past two years, the Democratic Congress has charted a new direction to help make college more affordable and accessible for all qualified students. We’ve enacted the single largest increase in federal student aid since the GI Bill and key measures to protect federal college aid from turbulence in the nation’s credit markets – and all without costing taxpayers a dime. We’ve proven we can work in a bipartisan way to enact good public policies that make sense for students, for our economy, and for taxpayers.

Now, with this bill signed into law, we have taken the next critical steps toward restoring the promise of our nation’s higher education programs: To help all students gain access to a world-class college education. For the first time in years, students and parents will encounter a higher education system that is more consumer-friendly and that operates in the best interests of helping them pay for college. This law will help every student in this country get their fair shot at a college degree, and reclaim their piece of the American Dream.

House Passes Higher Education Opportunity Act, Sets Stage for Higher Education Renewal for First Time in a Decade

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 31, 2008 3:30 PM
The House passed the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (H.R. 4137) today, by an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 380-49.  This vote gave final approval to an overhaul of our nation's higher education laws, advancing key reforms that would address the soaring price of college and remove other obstacles that make it harder for qualified students to go to college.  The Higher Education Act was last reauthorized in 1998. The current law expired in 2003.  The bill now moves to the Senate for final clearance before being sent to the President for his signature. 
Tuition and fees have increased across the board over the last five years, at public and private colleges and at two-year and four-year colleges. These increases have consistently outpaced increases in the rate of inflation and in families’ ability to pay, creating a college cost crisis that threatens to prevent qualified students from pursuing a higher education.   This measure addresses these affordability challenges by encouraging colleges to rein in price increases, ensuring that states maintain their commitments to higher education funding, and providing students and families with consumer-friendly information on college pricing and the factors driving tuition increases.  It also strengthens provisions previously approved by the House to avoid conflicts of interest in the student loan programs. The bill’s new provisions include requiring better consumer disclosures and protections on private student loans.
 
In addition, the Higher Education Opportunity Act would:
  • Streamline the federal student financial aid application process;
  • Make textbook costs more manageable for students by, among other things, helping them plan for textbook expenses in advance of each semester; 
  • Allow students to receive year-round Pell Grant scholarships; 
  • Strengthen college readiness programs; 
  • Increase college aid and support programs for veterans and military families; 
  • Improve safety on college campuses and help schools recover and rebuild after a disaster; 
  • Ensure equal college opportunities and fair learning environments for students with disabilities; and 
  • Strengthen our nation’s workforce and economic competitiveness by boosting science, technology, and foreign language educational opportunities.
“Today’s students face daunting obstacles on the path to college, from skyrocketing tuition prices to predatory student lending tactics. This landmark bipartisan legislation will address these challenges and create a higher education system that is more consumer-friendly, fairer, and easier-to-navigate.  Already, this Congress has taken historic steps to make college more affordable and accessible. With today’s vote, we are saying that in our nation’s higher education programs, the needs of students and families must always come first.” -- Chairman George Miller

“This bill is crucial to the health of our economy and will ensure that more students graduate prepared for the 21st century workplace.  It puts smart strategies in place to improve our student aid process, restore confidence in our student loan programs, and provide more low-income, first-generation, and minority students the chance to pursue a college education.” -- Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness



 

Historic Funding Increases for Historically Black Colleges and Universities This Fall

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 30, 2008 6:17 PM
As a result of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, enacted into law last year, historically black colleges and universities across America will begin to receive record increases in new funding for the coming school year. The U.S. Department of Education will start awarding the grants to schools tomorrow.
The law provides $170 million in new funding for HBCUs over the next two years to help expand college access, strengthen support services that focus on helping low-income and minority students stay in school and graduate, and renovate campuses in need of improvement. The grants provided under the law are mandatory funding, meaning schools will receive them in addition to any funding that is appropriated annually by the Congress. All 99 HBCUs that currently receive federal funds will benefit from this increase.

HBCUs play a significant role in helping African American students succeed in college and the workforce. Although they represent only 3 percent of all colleges and universities, they enroll close to a third of all African-American students. Forty percent of their students pursue four-year degrees in science, technology, engineering and math, and about half of all African-American students in teaching fields attend HBCUs.   Despite this progress, HBCUs continue to face a unique set of financial challenges, including balancing limited resources and endowments with a deep commitment to serving students with fewer financial resources. Many schools are in dire need of repair, especially Gulf Coast schools that are still feeling the devastating effects of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  Sadly, federal support for HBCUs and other minority-serving schools has dwindled under the Bush administration. In his most recent budget for the fiscal year 2009, President Bush proposed cutting funding for HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions by $85 million, a 35 percent decrease from the previous year’s budget.

In addition to the funding provided by the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, Democrats are also working to boost support for HBCUs by enacting the Higher Education Opportunity Act, which would strengthen and reauthorize the nation’s higher education programs. That bill, which Congress is working to finalize this week, would increase the amount of funding HBCUs could receive for capital projects, expand funding eligibility for graduate student programs at HBCUs and other minority serving-institutions and would address the challenges of starting and growing endowments at these schools.

“This landmark investment in HBCUs will strengthen college opportunities for millions of talented students.  HBCUs are a vital part of America’s higher education and economic framework, and have a long history of producing some of our nation’s greatest leaders, innovators, and thinkers. By providing HBCUs with these much-needed federal resources, we are saying that the needs of these vital institutions and their students can no longer go ignored.”  -- Chairman George Miller, author of the law

“HBCUs have played and continue to play an integral role in furthering the education of Black students in America.  Unfortunately, these institutions face increasing challenges and have limited resources.  I am very pleased with the historical investment to HBCUs that the College Cost Reduction and Access Act will provide. It is a much-needed step in the right direction and will go a long way toward helping HBCUs continue to provide a quality education to our nation's youth.” -- Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Education Taskforce

“As a graduate of the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, I and my brothers, sisters, nephews, cousins and friends know firsthand the opportunities provided by HBCUs, especially to low-income African American students.  Chairman George Miller and the Committee on Education and Labor are to be commended for this outstanding bill.” -- Rep. Danny K. Davis, Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Education Taskforce

House Expected to Vote on Higher Education Measure Tomorrow, July 31

By
Kittredge, Betsy Miller
 on July 30, 2008 4:03 PM
The House is expected to vote tomorrow, July 31, on the Higher Education Opportunity Act (H.R. 4137).  This measure is the conference report on the Higher Education Act reauthorization; conferees adopted the conference report last night.
This would be the first time the Higher Education Act was reauthorized since 1998. The current law expired in 2003. This Congress has already passed two major pieces of legislation to make college more affordable and accessible. Last September, Congress enacted the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, which provides more than $20 billion in federal college aid for students over five years – and at no new cost to taxpayers. This spring, Congress also enacted the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act, which safeguards students’ access to federal financial aid from turmoil in the U.S. credit markets. That law also carried no cost for taxpayers.

A college education continues to be the best path to the middle class. But more and more, high college prices and other obstacles are putting a college degree further out of reach for America’s students. In addition to rising tuition, students and their families face an overly complex federal student aid application process and a student loan industry mired in conflicts of interest and corrupt lending practices. The Higher Education Opportunity Act will continue this Congress’ effort to make college more affordable and accessible. This bill would reform our higher education system so that it operates in the best interests of students and families, while boosting our competitiveness and strengthening our future.
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