Has anyone seen the VP lately? (Vanity)

Note: Photos included.

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/04/17/Middle-Class-Task-Force-Report-College-Affordability/

THE BRIEFING ROOM • THE BLOG

Friday, April 17th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Middle Class Task Force Report: College Affordability

To see why the Middle Class Task Force is holding its third official meeting in St. Louis on “Making College More Affordable for our Families,” you need only look at this chart from the staff report showing the rise of median family income over the past 30 years compared to the rise in tuition costs:

Read the full Middle Class Task Force Staff Report (pdf) >>

The Vice President and others from the Task Force, joined by 28-year educator Dr. Jill Biden, are delving deep into these issues at their meeting. And for those with kids in college, or even just experiencing a sense of dread as tuition costs skyrocket year after year while your children grow up, the full report is worth a read. It examines the causes of the rise in costs, and addresses them head on. It discusses the fundamental shift in the treatment of government assistance in the President’s budget proposal, from increasing loans and grants to protecting them from political back-and-forth in the budget process year to year, ensuring families will always be able to count on the help they expect. The report also examines innovative ways that colleges can cut down on their costs, which are a primary factor in tuition costs alongside state budget cuts. This is all related to the President’s goal that by 2020, America should once again lead the world in the proportion of adults with a college degree.

(Vice President Joe Biden listens as Secretary of Education Arne Duncan answers a question from the audience
during a Middle Class Task Force event on College Affordability at the University of Missouri St. Louis,
Friday, April 17, 2009. Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

For those who have been through the process, or are facing the daunting task of applying for aid, the section on simplifying that process may be of particular interest:

Simplifying the Application Process for Aid

Another obstacle to federal student aid is the unnecessarily complicated application process that is often intimidating to families and students seeking loans. In order to qualify for aid, students or their parents must first complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, which contains well over 100 questions on income, assets, family characteristics, personal characteristics, and other items. Completing the FAFSA requires families to sift through paperwork and transfer numbers from tax forms that they may or may not have readily available.

The fact that well over one million students who could qualify for aid went without it during the 2003-2004 school year is one indication that the application process is too complicated. Furthermore, students who do not apply for aid due to the complexity of the process may be discouraged from applying to college at all, reducing college attendance rates. As a result, the complicated process works at cross-purposes with our goal of increasing college attendance and completion. Experts widely agree that the system is in need of change. There are two broad strategies to simplify the financial aid application process that are currently under discussion.

One strategy is to make it easier to complete the current form. For example, according to The Institute for College Access and Success (TICAS), about two-thirds of the questions on income and assets that are included in the FAFSA form can be automatically answered using IRS data. This means that the U.S. Department of Education could obtain this information directly from the IRS, and the student or family would only be required to answer the remaining questions. TICAS contends that a simplified process would have the added benefit of reducing errors among filers who erroneously transfer data by hand from their tax returns to the FAFSA form. It would also remove the burden of requiring colleges and universities to verify the income information on the FAFSA form using tax returns. The use of IRS data is also an attractive option because it can make the financial aid application process more efficient on its own or can be combined with other FAFSA simplification proposals. Importantly, compelling new research suggests that FAFSA simplification can substantially increase applications for student aid as well as subsequent college enrollment.

While appealing, simplification of the application process may not substantially address the length and complexity of the FAFSA for some, such as those who do not file tax returns with the IRS. Furthermore, even after removing the 22 questions that could be completed with data directly from the IRS, the form still would include nearly 100 questions. As a result, a second strategy for simplifying the application process for student aid is to shorten the form by reducing the number of questions asked. The scope of such simplification could be small or large, depending on the number of questions eliminated. The advantages of a short form would include greater transparency and the ability to make earlier determinations of aid. As an extreme example, economists Susan Dynarski and Judith Scott-Clayton have advocated for a form based on adjusted gross income and family size alone.14 Combined with IRS data, such an application would provide immediate, verifiable feedback on the amount of aid for which a student would be eligible. They argue that this would likely facilitate more timely decisions for families concerning higher education financing, and it would do so with only modest changes to the distribution of aid. This proposal represents just one possibility, but even a much less radical simplification would substantially ease the burden of filing the FAFSA on students and their families.

Strategies for simplifying the financial aid application process have potential merits, potential impacts on financial aid awards, and potential challenges in implementation. However, it is clear that simplification makes good policy sense, and that it would help families benefit from important resources available to help cover the cost of college.

(Dr. Jill Biden introduces Vice President Joe Biden during a Middle Class Task Force event on College
Affordability at the University of Missouri St. Louis, Friday, April 17, 2009.
Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

http://www.whitehouse.gov/StrongMiddleClass/
http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/staff_report_college_affordability1.pdf

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Middle-Class-Task-Force-Holds-Meeting-on-College-Affordability/

THE BRIEFING ROOM

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Vice President
____________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 17, 2009

Middle Class Task Force Holds Meeting
on College Affordability

www.AStrongMiddleClass.gov

Missouri – Today in St. Louis, Missouri, the Middle Class Task Force is holding a meeting, titled “Making College More Affordable for our Families.” The focus of the meeting is to discuss ways to expand opportunities and help make the dream of a college education a reality for more families. This is the third in series of meetings the Vice President and Task Force members are holding across the country on key issues facing the middle class.

“The challenges of paying for college in America is well understood - the growth of college tuition is far outpacing that of family income” said Vice President Biden. “No matter what else we do to get our economy moving, it all leads back to education. We realize the full measure of our success hinges on whether the standard of living for the middle class improves - and whether those aspiring for the middle class can get there, and stay there. The single best ticket to the middle class is a good education. And that’s why we are here today.”

The Vice President is today joined by his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, an educator for 28 years who continues to teach English courses at a DC-area community college; Secretary of Education Arne Duncan; and Cecilia Rouse, of the Council on Economic Advisers and leading expert on the economic impact of education, especially the impact of community colleges. The group is also joined by Senator Claire McCaskill and Missouri Governor Jay Nixon.

President Obama has set a goal that by 2020, America should once again lead the world in the proportion of adults with a college degree. A central goal of the Middle Class Task Force is to ensure that public policy is helping middle-class families to realize their aspirations. At the heart of those aspirations is the deep-seated desire of parents to ensure that their children have the opportunity to realize their potential. For many families, this means making sure their children can afford a college education. And for many of those same families, this challenge has been growing for years, such that today, paying for college strains many family budgets to the breaking point. The President, the Vice President and the Middle Class Task Force is committed to making sure that every student has the opportunity to earn a postsecondary credential or degree.

“We are doing all we can to make college more affordable and accessible for every middle class American,” said Secretary Arne Duncan. “The Obama Administration has already taken a giant step forward to make this a reality by investing in Pell grants and Federal Work Study, revamping the Perkins loan program, and changing the education tax credit to provide relief to more families struggling to pay for college. This is not just about four year universities, it’s also about the nearly 12 million students who attend community colleges. We still have a long way to go but I am confident we are on the path to dramatically increasing the number of Americans with college degrees.”

“While economists may disagree about many issues, we’re united in the importance of a college education in today’s increasingly competitive economy,” said White House Economic Advisor Cecilia Rouse. “As such, the Obama Administration’s commitment to making college affordable for today’s middle class families is more critical than ever.”

Many families save for college though tax-deferred savings plans called “529 plans” or simply “529s.” 529s are savings plans offered by states that let families save for college in a plan that works much like IRAs or 401(k) pension plans, wherein contributions receive some tax advantages. However, since the health of 529s depends to no small extent on the health of financial markets, at times like the present, when stocks and even fixed income investments have lost a great deal of their value, families can find their savings significantly diminished. This is especially tough for families whose children are ready to go to college, as such families don’t have the time needed to replenish their accounts as the market improves.

Today, Vice President Biden is asking the Treasury Department and the Secretary of Education to study ways of making 529 accounts more effective and reliable.

“We aren’t interested in empty promises. We need real, substantive ways to reinvest in student aid and putting money directly into the pockets of students who need help affording a college education,” said Vice President Biden. “That’s why today I am asking the Treasury Department and Secretary of Education to look into 529 plans and ways to make them more effective and reliable. Their analysis will examine how people save in the 529s, whether they are taking appropriate approaches to risk, and try to identify options and best practices for helping these funds be there for families when they need them.”

The Middle Class Task Force also released a staff report today focusing on the challenges of paying for college in America today, exploring policy steps that have already been taken and new steps that should be considered in order to make college more affordable to all families who aspire to provide a college education for their children.

The staff report hones in on affordability – specifically addressing the problem of a high school graduate who is fully capable of getting into and completing a college program, but for the financial constraints that she and her family face.

View the full staff report .

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