College May Become Unaffordable for Most in U.S.

[tricky]

College May Become Unaffordable for Most in U.S.

By TAMAR LEWIN
The rising cost of college — even before the recession — threatens to put higher education out of reach for most Americans, according to the biennial report from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
Over all, the report found, published college tuition and fees increased 439 percent from 1982 to 2007, adjusted for inflation, while median family income rose 147 percent. Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade, and students from lower-income families, on average, get smaller grants from the colleges they attend than students from more affluent families.
“If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education,” said Patrick M. Callan, president of the center, a nonpartisan organization that promotes access to higher education.
“When we come out of the recession,” Mr. Callan added, “we’re really going to be in jeopardy, because the educational gap between our work force and the rest of the world will make it very hard to be competitive. Already, we’re one of the few countries where 25- to 34-year-olds are less educated than older workers.”
Although college enrollment has continued to rise in recent years, Mr. Callan said, it is not clear how long that can continue.
“The middle class has been financing it through debt,” he said. “The scenario has been that families that have a history of sending kids to college will do whatever if takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt.”
But low-income students, he said, will be less able to afford college. Already, he said, the strains are clear.
The report, “Measuring Up 2008,” is one of the few to compare net college costs — that is, a year’s tuition, fees, room and board, minus financial aid — against median family income. Those findings are stark. Last year, the net cost at a four-year public university amounted to 28 percent of the median family income, while a four-year private university cost 76 percent of the median family income.
The share of income required to pay for college, even with financial aid, has been growing especially fast for lower-income families, the report found.
Among the poorest families — those with incomes in the lowest 20 percent — the net cost of a year at a public university was 55 percent of median income, up from 39 percent in 1999-2000. At community colleges, long seen as a safety net, that cost was 49 percent of the poorest families’ median income last year, up from 40 percent in 1999-2000.
The likelihood of large tuition increases next year is especially worrying, Mr. Callan said. “Most governors’ budgets don’t come out until January, but what we’re seeing so far is Florida talking about a 15 percent increase, Washington State talking about a 20 percent increase, and California with a mixture of budget cuts and enrollment cuts,” he said.
In a separate report released this week by the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, the public universities acknowledged the looming crisis, but painted a different picture.
That report emphasized that families have many higher-education choices, from community colleges, where tuition and fees averaged about $3,200, to private research universities, where they cost more than $33,000.
“We think public higher education is affordable right now, but we’re concerned that it won’t be, if the changes we’re seeing continue, and family income doesn’t go up,” said David Shulenburger, the group’s vice president for academic affairs and co-author of the report. “The public conversation is very often in terms of a $35,000 price tag, but what you get at major public research university is, for the most part, still affordable at 6,000 bucks a year.”
While tuition has risen at public universities, his report said, that has largely been to make up for declining state appropriations. The report offered its own cost projections, not including room and board.
“Projecting out to 2036, tuition would go from 11 percent of the family budget to 24 percent of the family budget, and that’s pretty huge,” Mr. Shulenburger said. “We only looked at tuition and fees because those are the only things we can control.”
Looking at total costs, as families must, he said, his group shared Mr. Callan’s concerns.
Mr. Shulenburger’s report suggested that public universities explore a variety of approaches to lower costs — distance learning, better use of senior year in high school, perhaps even shortening college from four years.
“There’s an awful lot of experimentation going on right now, and that needs to go on,” he said. “If you teach a course by distance with 1,000 students, does that affect learning? Till we know the answer, it’s difficult to control costs in ways that don’t affect quality.”
Mr. Callan, for his part, urged a reversal in states’ approach to higher-education financing.
“When the economy is good, and state universities are somewhat better funded, we raise tuition as little as possible,” he said. “When the economy is bad, we raise tuition and sock it to families, when people can least afford it. That’s exactly the opposite of what we need.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/ed...llege.html?em#

While tuition has risen at public universities, his report said, that has largely been to make up for declining state appropriations

Interesting. Does NOT say that it's due to more people going, just less state funding. Xian?


Obama's Plan

Originally Posted by www.change.gov

• Create the American Opportunity Tax Credit: Obama and Biden will make college affordable for all Americans by creating a new American Opportunity Tax Credit. This universal and fully refundable credit will ensure that the first $4,000 of a college education is completely free for most Americans, and will cover two-thirds the cost of tuition at the average public college or university and make community college tuition completely free for most students. Recipients of the credit will be required to conduct 100 hours of community service.
• Simplify the Application Process for Financial Aid: Obama and Biden will streamline the financial aid process by eliminating the current federal financial aid application and enabling families to apply simply by checking a box on their tax form, authorizing their tax information to be used, and eliminating the need for a separate application.

http://change.gov/agenda/education_agenda/

Can't wait for that tax credit. Gonna do all my community service at the local Marxist Institute.

[PETA]

More people going would, in a free market, suggest that the university would need to collect less tuition from each additional student not more.

Tuition inflation is specifically a result of gov't subsidized loans.

Tuition is used, in many cases, as an admissions tool not as a revenue tool to keep the university afloat. That's why Austin costs more than the satellite campuses.

[tricky]

Originally Posted by St. Stalin the Apathetic

Tuition inflation is specifically a result of gov't subsidized loans.

Tuition is used, in many cases, as an admissions tool not as a revenue tool to keep the university afloat.

WTF is an admissions tool? The article stated it's due to less funding from the states. Did you not read that?

[tricky]

And as for government subsidized loans....The gov should just use the money it wastes on interest and fund the colleges directly. Student loans should not be a for-profit business. Ideally, the gov should loan money directly to students at extremely low interest rates if they are needed at all. Then again, I think higher education should be free for all. An uneducated workforce is definitely not going to help us retain our position as a world power, neither will saddling students with enormous debt.

[PETA]

Originally Posted by tricky

WTF is an admissions tool? The article stated it's due to less funding from the states. Did you not read that?

The article is wrong. Tuition, primarily, keeps accellerating (and does so at a rate for exceeding any state reduction in funding) because students are willing to take out great big loans, banks are willing to write them and the gov't will subsidize them. There is no incentive for colleges NOT to keep bumping tuition. Additionally, most of the revenue increases have gone to things other than improving the student educational experience.

Admission tool = a mechanism used to channel students to or from a specific campus. UT Austin costs more than the satellite campuses. This is intentional. Its a method of demographic management. In short, it prices some students out.

[tricky]

Originally Posted by St. Stalin the Apathetic

The article is wrong. Tuition, primarily, keeps accellerating (and does so at a rate for exceeding any state reduction in funding) because students are willing to take out great big loans, banks are willing to write them and the gov't will subsidize them. There is no incentive for colleges NOT to keep bumping tuition. Additionally, most of the revenue increases have gone to things other than improving the student educational experience.

Admission tool = a mechanism used to channel students to or from a specific campus. UT Austin costs more than the satellite campuses. This is intentional. Its a method of demographic management. In short, it prices some students out.

NYTimes:
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper published in New York City. The largest metropolitan newspaper in the United States, "The Gray Lady"—named for its staid appearance and style—is regarded as a national newspaper of record. Founded in 1851, the newspaper has won 98 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper. Its motto, as printed in the upper left-hand corner of the front page, is "All the News That's Fit to Print." The Times is owned by The New York Times Company, which publishes 18 other newspapers, including the International Herald Tribune and The Boston Globe. The company's chairman is Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr., whose family has controlled the paper since 1896.
This newspaper is organized into three sections: News, Opinions, and Features. The Times stayed with the eight-column format for several years after most papers switched to six columns, and it was one of the last newspapers to adopt color photography. The Times website is rated as one of the most popular websites online, receiving over 14 million unique visitors in August 2008.

I'll take your assertion with a grain of salt... Where is all this extra money going? Are universities, faculty, staff, all getting filthy rich with this money. I know the student loan industry is, but that makes no sense. They're just skimming from the interest rates while the university actually receives the money. Where does it go? I don't see public endowments rocketing yet I constantly see public funding decrease.


http://www.rockymountainnews.com/new...-on-the-brink/
http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t...dH9vT3ktpnj3rg
http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t...2PlZHXMr6WdrlA
http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t...AhmUdmS5vGrLjA
http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t...GA542c8AfOqAKA

All those articles are decreases in state funding. .

[name change request]

Originally Posted by St. Stalin the Apathetic

The article is wrong.

gotta love it. everyone is wrong, xian is right.

duh!

[PETA]

Originally Posted by joel

gotta love it. everyone is wrong, xian is right.

duh!

My father-in-law is a vice president of a state school... he's a former dean of students. I talk to him about this shit. He knows his business. I'm repeating it here. Feel free to believe what you wish to believe.

Originally Posted by tricky

I'll take your assertion with a grain of salt... Where is all this extra money going?

A different answer for each school. However, commonly schools reinvest in buildings and foundations on campus that have very little to do with undergraduate education because these investments help elevate the school in the US News & Report Top 100 Schools list.

Just an example: Take the UM Weisman Art Museum... designed by Frank Gehry. I think its a fucking eyesore and it was a pain in the ass to walk around while getting built. It adds prestige to UM but pretty close to zero to the majority of students on campus.

http://www.weisman.umn.edu/

[tricky]

Originally Posted by wsj

As public colleges grapple with reductions in state funding, the prospect of reduced access to higher education is looking more likely.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1228...googlenews_wsj

very good article. Will you at least concede that decreased funding by the states is a contributing factor?

[PETA]

Originally Posted by tricky

very good article. Will you at least concede that decreased funding by the states is a contributing factor?

sure - that's why I put "primarily" in the comment above. No one factor is controlling. However, gov't subsidized loans is the largest of the factors.

[name change request]

Originally Posted by St. Stalin the Apathetic

My father-in-law is a vice president of a state school... he's a former dean of students. I talk to him about this shit. He knows his business. I'm repeating it here. Feel free to believe what you wish to believe.

i just find it amusing how everyone is always wrong and you are always right

you have got to be the most stuck up arrogant piece of shit alive.

[HomoSexualPredator]

I'll take a step off the dem party line here...

I'm a firm believer that not everyone should go to college, and sure as hell not everyone needs a degree. WAY to many people blow a ton of cash on an education that will get them very little over the life of their career.

I think more folks need to start going to trade schools instead.

Or maybe we should teach students how to read in regular school instead of how to take tests.

[tricky]

Originally Posted by St. Stalin the Apathetic

My father-in-law is a vice president of a state school... he's a former dean of students. I talk to him about this shit. He knows his business. I'm repeating it here. Feel free to believe what you wish to believe.



A different answer for each school. However, commonly schools reinvest in buildings and foundations on campus that have very little to do with undergraduate education because these investments help elevate the school in the US News & Report Top 100 Schools list.

Just an example: Take the UM Weisman Art Museum... designed by Frank Gehry. I think its a fucking eyesore and it was a pain in the ass to walk around while getting built. It adds prestige to UM but pretty close to zero to the majority of students on campus.

http://www.weisman.umn.edu/

Support the Weisman Art Museum
As an affiliate of the University of Minnesota, the Weisman Art Museum receives support from the University for basic operations. The museum must raise more than half its annual budget from charitable sources: foundations, corporations, and individuals. This support enables the Weisman to present exhibitions and programs that offer visitors from different backgrounds a place to see important works of art and to engage in discussions about the issues of our time.
There are many ways to give to the Weisman, with many benefits and privileges available to you in appreciation of your generosity. We are grateful to our members and donors for their loyalty and enthusiasm, and look forward to working with new friends.


donations & sponsorships
In addition to membership, there are several ways to support the Weisman through donations and sponsorships.
Annual Fund
The annual fund is vital to the day-to-day operation of the museum. Through the annual fund, individuals play a vital role in the museum’s mission, providing unrestricted donations support for exhibitions and programs.
Annual fund donors are among the Weisman's most dedicated friends and demonstrate an appreciation for the ways in which the Weisman enhances the Twin Cities' cultural landscape.
To make a contribution to the Weisman’s annual fund:

• Donate online via the University of Minnesota Foundation, the Weisman’s fiscal agent. This secured Web site encrypts all personal information (credit card number, name, and address) so that it cannot be read as the information travels over the Internet. Please select Weisman Art Museum from the pull-down list of gift destinations.
• Donate by mail. Send a check or credit card number (with expiration date), along with your name, address, and telephone number to Weisman Art Museum, Attn: Development Office, 333 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455.
• Donate by telephone. Call the Development Office at (612) 625-4460 to donate using your credit card.

Planned Giving
Planned giving refers to any major gift that involves financial or estate planning. Such gifts can provide important benefits to you and to the museum. The different types of planned gifts include endowed gifts; gifts of securities, tangible personal property, real estate, or life insurance; life income gifts (charitable gift annuities and charitable remainder trusts); and bequests.
Contact Matt Nielsen, director of development, at (612) 625-9678 or niel0044@umn.edu if you are interested in making a planned gift.
Sponsorship
Opportunities exist for corporations, foundations, and individuals to sponsor special exhibitions and programs. Sponsors receive substantial exposure and acknowledgment in recognition for their support. Sponsorship opportunities are available at various levels. Benefits include:

• Acknowledgement in exhibition/program materials including advertising, press releases, Web site, outdoor signage, and retail merchandise such as catalogues
• Exhibition signage in museum
• Recognition in mailings to the Weisman’s constituencies
• Private tours and exhibition previews
• Facility rental privileges
• Invitations to opening night celebration
• Additional opportunities specific to your needs

The Weisman is happy to work with interested parties to develop a plan that meets your goals. Contact Matt Nielsen at (612) 625-9678 or niel0044@umn.edu to discuss sponsorship opportunities.

So, Once again, where is this money going? The Weisman mainly relies on private donations.....

[PETA]

Originally Posted by HomoQueer

I'll take a step off the dem party line here...

I'm a firm believer that not everyone should go to college, and sure as hell not everyone needs a degree. WAY to many people blow a ton of cash on an education that will get them very little over the life of their career.

I think more folks need to start going to trade schools instead.

My father-in-law, a dyed-in-the-wool liberal, would agree with you. He's of the opinion that costs will cause either a breakdown in the current system or more likely give rise to a parallel system where schools teaching specialized skills start becoming more and more common and cost effective in terms of tuition and earning potential.

Originally Posted by tricky

So, Once again, where is this money going? The Weisman mainly relies on private donations.....

to the University... those dollars could be going to fund a chair in discipline X Y or Z but they didn't.

Again, much of the reinvestment goes into status items that impress the US&WR

you've got my comments - believe what ever the hell you want to believe -

[david austin]

get a loan hippies... ive got LOTS still to pay