Report

Obama’s Budget: Supporting Students, Not Banks

Eric Lotke — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 11:28:34 -0700

President Obama’s budget proposal would transform the federal financial aid system that struggling students and families rely on to pay for college. The proposed budget cuts excessive lender subsidies, moves to more efficient direct lending instead, and invests the savings in students. The changes are major steps toward making college opportunity affordable for all Americans. This report explains the impact for students, nationally and by state.

» Download the full report (PDF)
» Related Reading: The Obama Budget: A Stick In the Eye For Banks

Over the past decade, states have cut their contributions to college budgets and grant aid has stagnated. Students have been forced to pay ever higher tuition and costs. At the same time, wages are flat and savings have plummeted. Facing skyrocketing cost, students and families have increasingly turned to loans to pay for college. The number of college students graduating with over $25,000 in student loan debt has tripled in the last decade. The rising debt squeezes students and families out of higher education.

New data from the National Center on Education Statistics show that in the United States, the average cost of tuition at a public four-year college increased $1,729, or 29 percent, between 2000 and 2007. Tuition went up 5 percent last year alone.

Among other changes, the Obama budget eliminates the Federal Family Education Loan Program, which excessively subsidizes banks, and moves to the U.S. Department of Education’s Direct Loan program. The Congressional Budget office projects this move to save $94 billion over nine years. The Obama budget then redirects the savings to students. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that in 2010-2011, $5 billion would be cut from subsidies to banks and lenders, and invested in students instead.

Redirecting the bank subsidies toward Pell grants would solidify the grant program as the premier source of assistance for low-income students. The Pell grant maximum would increase from $5,350 to $5,550; the estimated national average Pell grant award would increase by $121, from $3,299 to $3,423. Increasing the award will also enable an additional 130,000 more students to attend college per $100 increase in the maximum award.

This bold move is the type of reinvestment that is needed to get students into college so they get the education they need to move the country forward.

State Impact

These reports outline the impact of tuition cost increases in each state and the difference the Obama administration's student loan proposals would make by shifting funds from bank subsidies to direct student loans. (Click here for a map by Campus Progress showing this data.)

Alabama Report | News Release
Alaska Report | News Release
Arizona Report | News Release
Arkansas Report | News Release
California Report | News Release
Colorado Report | News Release
Connecticut Report | News Release
Delaware Report | News Release
Florida Report | News Release
Georgia Report | News Release
Hawaii Report | News Release
Idaho Report | News Release
Illinois Report | News Release
Indiana Report | News Release
Iowa Report | News Release
Kansas Report | News Release
Kentucky Report | News Release
Louisiana Report | News Release
Maine Report | News Release
Maryland Report | News Release
Massachusetts Report | News Release
Michigan Report | News Release
Minnesota Report | News Release
Mississippi Report | News Release
Missouri Report | News Release
Montana Report | News Release
Nebraska Report | News Release
Nevada Report | News Release
New Hampshire Report | News Release
New Jersey Report | News Release
New Mexico Report | News Release
New York Report | News Release
North Carolina Report | News Release
North Dakota Report | News Release
Ohio Report | News Release
Oklahoma Report | News Release
Oregon Report | News Release
Pennsylvania Report | News Release
Rhode Island Report | News Release
South Carolina Report | News Release
South Dakota Report | News Release
Tennessee Report | News Release
Texas Report | News Release
Utah Report | News Release
Vermont Report | News Release
Virginia Report | News Release
Washington Report | News Release
West Virginia Report | News Release
Wisconsin Report | News Release
Wyoming Report | News Release

COHEAO and NACUBO Survey Reveals Perkins Loan Shortfalls

OurFuture.org Staff — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:56:28 -0800

Of the institutions that responded to the survey, 28 percent indicated that they expected their institution to have a shortfall in their Perkins Loan fund on June 30, 2008, which would require their institution to make a loan to the fund. Another 18 percent were unsure if they would have a shortfall.

The institutions expecting a shortfall are primarily small, private institutions. 68 percent of the 76 institutions are private, four-year institutions, and more than 60 percent have a full-time equivalent student enrollment of 5,000 students or less.

The average projected shortfall anticipated at these institutions is $560,304, or a median of $200,000. Thirty-one percent of institutions anticipated that collections in the upcoming fiscal year would be sufficient to fully repay their institution’s loan to the fund. However, 37 percent indicated that they did not believe that collections would be sufficient.

Colleges and universities are finding themselves in this unprecedented situation due to several factors over the last few years, including the lack of new capital contributions by the federal government and large swings in the number of borrowers choosing to consolidate Perkins loans with their other federally guaranteed loans after leaving school.

This shortfall situation will require institutions to find institutional dollars to lend to their Perkins fund. Even at institutions that do not have shortfalls, students are likely to receive much less support from the Perkins Loan program next year.

School Facilities

Alex Carter — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 09:32:28 -0700

Trends in College Pricing 2007

Scott Laczay — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 14:25:21 -0700

Trends in Student Aid 2007

Scott Laczay — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 14:23:01 -0700

Education Pays

Terrance Heath — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:04:35 -0700

Higher Education: Chasing the Dream

Scott Laczay — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 14:16:29 -0700

A report detailing the state-by-state impact, as well as the impact on certain ethnic groups, of the increase of college education and the decrease in median household income.

Read full report »

Higher Education: Soaring Out of Reach for America’s Families

tjackson — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 10:21:31 -0700

Since the year 2000, the average cost of tuition at a public college has increased
42%,[1] while median household income has fallen 2%.[2]

The dream of a college education is being priced out of reach for more and more American students and their families. Tuition is rising while wages are flat or sinking. Conservatives in Congress have responded by cutting $12 billion from federal student loan programs and raising loan interest rates for student and their parents. Conservatives in state governments have cut back funding for colleges, passing more costs to families in the form of increased tuitions and fees. See the reports below for detailed impacts.

See how your Senator voted (109th Congress) »

See how your Representative voted (109th Congress) »

NATIONWIDE: Report

AFRICAN AMERICANS: Report

ASIAN AMERICANS: Report

HISPANIC AMERICANS: Report

State Reports

ALABAMA: Report

ARIZONA: Report

CALIFORNIA: Report

CONNECTICUT: Report

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Report

GEORGIA: Report

IDAHO: Report

INDIANA: Report

KANSAS: Report

LOUISIANA: Report

MARYLAND: Report

MICHIGAN: Report

MISSISSIPPI: Report

MONTANA: Report

NEVADA: Report

NEW JERSEY: Report

NEW YORK: Report

NORTH DAKOTA: Report

OKLAHOMA: Report

PENNSYLVANIA: Report

SOUTH CAROLINA: Report

TENNESSEE: Report

UTAH: Report

VIRGINIA: Report

WEST VIRGINIA: Report

WYOMING: Report

ALASKA: Report

ARKANSAS: Report

COLORADO: Report

DELAWARE: Report

FLORIDA: Report

HAWAII: Report

ILLINOIS: Report

IOWA: Report

KENTUCKY: Report

MAINE: Report

MASSACHUSETTS: Report

MINNESOTA: Report

MISSOURI: Report

NEBRASKA: Report

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Report

NEW MEXICO: Report

NORTH CAROLINA: Report

OHIO: Report

OREGON: Report

RHODE ISLAND: Report

SOUTH DAKOTA: Report

TEXAS: Report

VERMONT: Report

WASHINGTON: Report

WISCONSIN: Report

[1] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Higher Education General Information

Survey (HEGIS). Average Undergraduate Tuition and Fees and Room and Board Rated Charged for Full-Time

Students in Degree-Granting Institutions, by Type and Control of Institution: 1964-65 through 2004-2005.

[2] US Census Bureau, Table H-8. Median Household Income by State: 1984 to 2005.

Cutting Interest Rates, Lowering Student Debt

Scott Laczay — Sat, 13 Jan 2007 13:31:22 -0800

The High Cost of High School Dropouts

Scott Laczay — Sat, 13 Jan 2007 13:12:43 -0800

http://www.all4ed.org/publications/HighCost.pdf