To Maintain America's Competitive Edge, Congress Must Continue to Make College More Affordable and Accessible, Experts Tell Education and Labor Committee

Thursday, March 8, 2007

WASHINGTON, DC -- Higher education experts today urged Congress to continue to expand need-based aid to help expand college access to low-income students and minorities, and to streamline federal student aid programs as it begins work to reauthorize the Higher Education Act, the main law governing the nation?s higher education system. The experts told members of the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness that increasing college access was critical to producing the highly educated and skilled workforce America needs to remain a global economic leader.

The hearing, "The State of Higher Education: How Students Access and Finance A College Education," kicked off the Education and Labor Committee's plans to hear policy suggestions from all relevant stakeholders about how to expand college access and affordability, make the federal student loan system more effective and efficient, and boost enrollment and graduation rates.

"There is a growing concern that, as a nation, we are losing our competitive edge.  We know from experience that investing in higher education is one of our primary tools for sharpening that competitive edge," said Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX), the subcommittee?s chairman. "Clearly, we need to expand access and success in higher education on a larger scale than ever before. The reauthorization of the Higher Education Act gives us our opportunity to do that."

"According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, while 75 percent of high-income students enter college today, only 31 percent of low-income students do," testified Jamie Merisotis, President of the Institute for Higher Education Policy. "Research indicates that the investment in need-based grant aid is the best and most important contribution that the federal government can make to keeping the dream of a college education a reality for all Americans. Significantly increased support for the Pell Grant program therefore should be a centerpiece of efforts to enhance the programs and politics in the Higher Education Act."

Ross Weiner, Vice President for Program and Policy at the Education Trust, warned the subcommittee that unless college graduation rates rise, America could face a serious shortage of workers in just a few years. "Projections based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate that, if current trends are not changed, then the U.S. will face a shortfall of more than 3 million workers with bachelors degrees not in 20 or 30 years, but in five years ? by 2012." Wiener advocated that Congress should continue to restore the purchasing power of the Pell Grant scholarship, simplify the federal financial aid application process, make loan repayment schedules based on family income, and work with states to enhance need-based aid and cost-containment.

David Breneman, Dean and Professor of the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, discussed his work as chair of an advisory committee to the National Center on Public Policy and Higher Education, which produces national report cards on higher education. Breneman noted that among the 2006 report card's key findings were that college participation and completion rates have stagnated, and states' performances on college affordability were extremely weak. "The report's measure of college affordability gives precision to the widely-recognized fact that the cost of college is rapidly outstripping the ability of many families to pay."

Skyrocketing college costs have become a key concern for American families. Since 2001, tuition and fees at four-year public colleges and universities have risen 41 percent -- after inflation. The typical student now graduates with $17,500 in total federal student loan debt alone. As many as 200,000 would-be students delay or forgo attending college due to financial barriers, according to past estimates by the Department of Education.

Making a college education more affordable for all qualified students is a core element of the Education and Labor Committee's plans to strengthen America?s middle class. The experts' recommendations today offered strong support for vital first steps that the 110th Congress has already taken to help students and families pay for college by halving interest rates on federal students loans, and boosting the Pell Grant scholarship for students most in need by $260, from $4,050 to $4,310.

For Chairman Hinojosa's opening statement at today's hearing, click here.
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