Posted on 01/27/2012 11:06:17 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Since his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama has been campaigning in touring five battleground states. His final stop on that tour comes today. At a rally at the University of Michigan, the president plans to unveil a plan to increase federal “investment” in the Perkins loan program — from $1 billion to $8 billion — and to revamp the formula for distributing the money. The Washington Post has a few more details:
Under the plan, colleges would be rewarded based on their success in offering relatively lower tuition prices, providing value and serving low-income students, the White House said.
The plan would not cost taxpayers additional dollars because students pay off the aid money with interest, officials stressed.
The administration also is proposing to create a competition that provides $55 million in start-up funding for higher education institutions to pursue innovation to boost productivity.
At first glance, the reformation of the distribution formula, at least, sounds like a decent idea, but coupling that reformulation with increased “investment” into the Perkins loan program is uncalled for at this point. While the administration stresses that students pay the loans back with interest, that’s no reason to spend more now when we can ill afford it — especially given the government’s demonstrated willingness to forgive student loan debts. Why not attempt the reform of the distribution formulation without increasing overall investment in the program?
Furthermore, the fact that the program has to be reformed because it presently provides perverse incentives to keep college costs high just underscores why the federal government shouldn’t be in the student loan business in the first place: The federal government’s continued push to grant students low-interest college loans (based on the flawed premise that everybody should go to college) has swelled demand for a college education, which has in turn swelled tuition prices. Higher tuition prices means students have to borrow even more. Sound familiar? The education industry is sitting on a bubble, just like the housing market was. That bubble needs to burst. Investing more federal dollars into a student loan program — even if the investment is intended to create incentives to lower costs — isn’t the way to reform it.
He could reduce costs by eliminating “Dork-O-Matic” majors -like the one he undoubtedly (purchased, cheated, quota-ed) himself into.
say goodbye to private colleges and say hello to a system like Germany.
What is preventing students and/or “Occupiers” from shopping around for the most affordable colleges right now?
Why do they think they need a new law?
“Under the plan, colleges would be rewarded based on their success in offering relatively lower tuition prices, providing value and serving low-income students, the White House said.”
Sort of like imposing the ‘success’ of section 8 apartments to education.
“The plan would not cost taxpayers additional dollars because students pay off the aid money with interest, officials stressed.”
These kind of statements aren’t even remotely funny anymore. Where the h@ll does the money come from in the first place and where the h@ll are my dividends from the interest revenue?
-!
“The plan would not cost taxpayers additional dollars because students pay off the aid money with interest, officials stressed”
If this were true, we wouldn’t need federal financial aid...students could all just go to a bank.
What ever happened to getting a job and paying your own way?
A family that makes 50K doesn't get a penny in aid, even if they have 2 kids in school. Give to the poor, Give to the poor; I'm sick of this garbage. No wonder they are poor.
“The plan would not cost taxpayers additional dollars because students pay off the aid money with interest, officials stressed.”
Here is a 2010 report:
http://www.ifap.ed.gov/perkinscdrguide/attachments/0910PerkinsCDR.pdf
Of the 367,000 people who finished school and ‘entered repayment status’ in 2008-2009, 37,000, or a full 10 PERCENT were in default by June 2010!!
And out of all loan holders, almost half a million people are 240 days past due.
I worked full-time while I was in school, and had to take a personal loan from the bank for my last year because I was not a ghetto bastard born to a slut.
The permanent underclass in this country is chasing productive people out of Dem states, so the Kenyan Pirate has to nationalize these programs. If he doesn’t, the “Old South” and Midwest will have 400 electoral votes while the hollow shells of the coasts and the upper Midwest will have the remainder. It is imperative (and supported by many blue state RINOs) that this flight from socialism be stopped.
“What ever happened to getting a job and paying your own way?”
Well, the first part’s easy - there are no jobs. The ones that available (Wal-Mart greeters and such) wouldn’t even buy your books.
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