Obama’s Budget: Supporting Students, Not Banks

President Obama’s 2010 budget 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. Our report examines the impact, for the entire country and for students in each state.

» Related Reading: The Obama Budget: A Stick In the Eye For Banks

America's Student Debt Now!

Attending the “Degrees of College Debt” panel at the America’s Future Now! conference last week, it was astonishing to hear dozens of graduates describe the mountains of debt they are climbing; $10,000! $50,000! $120,000 of debt! attendees shouted, when asked by the panel how much debt they had. more »

No Child Left Behind Fails Us All

We have seen a “bailout” of corporate and Wall Street swindlers, with the working class being forced to pick up the tab. Struggling homeowners deserve a break, not the devastation of foreclosure. Hardworking families deserve a break, not the shock of unemployment. And public educators deserve a break, not the damaging mandates of program improvement and the threats of state takeover that have fallen on my high school and countless others like it due to the draconian quotas of the No Child Left Behind Act.

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Banking Collapse Lands on America’s Schools

One of the worst casualties of the Iraq war and the Wall Street failures is the U.S. public school system, which is central to the nation’s economic, intellectual and social health. With financial resources being consumed, education cuts are on the way.

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Another Student Loan Crisis?

This summer, rumors stirred that the incoming class of college freshmen was having difficulty securing loans for college. The crisis, however, is more about the ways we're asking college students to finance their educations.

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The Democratic Education Divide

This was an unusual spectacle at a Democratic convention: A megawatt group of Democrats, including Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, Mayor Adrian Fenty of Washington, D.C., and former Gov. Ray Romer of Colorado, bashed teachers' unions for an hour. Is this any way to treat allies in the progressive struggle?

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How Anti-Intellectualism is Destroying America

Sad but true: Intelligence is a political liability in the U.S. Author of The Age of American Unreason Susan Jacoby explains why.

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College: Soaring Out of Reach for Families

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 below to find out how your representative voted.

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