Dreams of College Deferred?

Many schools districts have recently cut funding for summer activities or schooling that are deemed essential in helping close the achievement gap. The Los Angeles school district, for instance, eliminated summer school except for special education students or ones who need credits to graduate, saving $34 million. Yet an ABC News article notes that 65 percent of the academic gaps between low-income ninth graders and their peers can be attributed to unequal summer learning opportunities.While districts continue to cut funding, low-income students will be further disadvantaged in educational opportunities. 

An article in The Kansas City Star, though, claims that there is a panacea to this growing problem. The author argues that community colleges and universities can offer summer programs that not only help low-income students close the academic gap, but can even inspire students to matriculate to colleges or universities - something they may never have considered. This is in light of recent Department of Labor statistics that cite that 72 percent of new jobs and 90 percent of high-growth, high wage jobs require some form of post-high school education.

Summer programs not only help low-income students stay on par with their academic learning, but also enlighten them to new career interests and help them realize the feasibility of a college education. The Kansas City Star notes that one girl, Keitha Boston, wished to enroll in a culinary arts school, but after a summer program at University of Missouri - Kansas City Campus, she will instead likely pursue a four-year university education. Another student, Ryan Benjamin, felt that in a college environment he would be unable to compete with the other students, but after attending a math and science camp at Northwest Missouri State University, he understood his own abilities and no longer felt intimidated. The secondary benefits of these early college programs are innumerable for students who do not at first consider college education a future goal.

The question remains, however, as to how these partnerships between school districts and local community colleges and universities can be funded. Private organizations such as the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation or the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation have pledged money to support such programs in Kansas City. To expand such early college programs nationally, though, funding opportunities and partnerships with organizations such as those aforementioned will need to be solicited and sought after; the strides made towards closing the achievement gap, however, would be vast and the secondary benefits invaluable.

Articles referenced: 

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=8052549&page=1

http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/1319998.html

Kevin Prior

INeedAPencil Summer Associate

Harvard College 2011

The Student Loan Crisis

An independent education policy think tank called Education Sector recently released a report on student debt that analyzed 15 years of data, up until the 2007-2008 school year. The report, called "Drowning in Debt: The Emerging Student Loan Crisis", found that the costs of higher education have doubled over the 15 year period, with family income and financial aid not on par. It found that in 1993 only 32% of students who attended public universities borrowed in the form of loans, yet that number as of 2008 is now up to more than 50%. More important, the crisis is disproportionately burdening African Americans - in fact, the percentage of African American students taking on loans had tripled from 2004 to 2008.

The risings costs of higher education have led students to take on risky private loans with high interest rates. In a recent Huffington Post article, authors Manisha Thakor and Sharon Kedar offer those looking to pay for college a few tips. One guideline of note that they propose, is that students should not take out a total amount of student loans that would exceed their income within 10 years of graduation - or, in simple terms, if you expect to make an average annual income of $50,000, you should not take out more than $50,000 in student loans. Thakor and Kedar even account for taxes and savings, but note that this is not a strict formula to follow, and is flexible at one's own discretion.

Schools must continue to make financial aid a priority as well as streamlining budgetary costs so that tuition payments can more realistically be met. Further, they must consider the implications this crisis has on minority and low-income students in their pursuit to make college more affordable. These loans students are paying with represent a risky investment, and as we have learned, risky investments can have disastrous consequences.

Articles referenced:

http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/07/06/daily62.html

http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/08/how-much-is-too-much-for-college/

Kevin Prior

INeedAPencil Summer Associate

Harvard College 2011

Recession and College Choice

From The Dallas Morning News, personal anecdotes on how the recession is affecting high school students' choice of enrollment for higher education. Interesting and disturbing statistic: 70% of high schools reported that a great number of their students sacrificed "dream schools" for ones that were more economically viable.

Link: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/education/stories/DN-collegedreams_29met.ART.State.Edition2.4ba5b8a.html

Kevin Prior
INeedAPencil Summer Associate
Harvard College 2011

College Affordability - A Zero Sum Game

The Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that a survey conducted by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities found that tuition will rise an average of 4.3% next year, the smallest increase in 37 years. This shows marked fiscal constraint on behalf of universities who have lost millions of dollars in endowment investments and have fewer liquid assets with which to pay normal operating costs.

Harvard, with the largest endowment of any university in the world, used about a third of endowment funding towards its operating costs in 2008. In March 2009, however, the university announced that it would diminish its dependence on the endowment by reducing the amount allocated to the operating budget to only 8%. This comes after a 22% loss in the endowment's nearly $37 billion value. Harvard has begun cutting jobs and budgets to make up for this loss as well as past reliance on the endowment for operating costs.

Harvard, however, is one of the more fortunate universities. President Faust has stood by her commitment to continue to offer financial aid as a priority despite the economic downturn, with one of the best programs in the country - even offering a full-ride for students whose families make under $60,000 in annual salary. More important, Harvard will continue its need-blind policy in evaluating applicants for admissions - that is, one's ability to pay tuition will not be taken into account when one's application is reviewed.

A recent New York Times article noted that many universities are now looking more favorably on applicants of wealthier means - even Morton Owen Schapiro, President of Williams College, remarked, "There’s going to be a cascading of talented lower-income kids down the social hierarchy of American higher education, and some cascading up of affluent kids." Colleges are even accepting transfer students or wait-listed students who they need not adhere to their usual policy of need-blind evaluation when reviewing. This creates a worrisome trend, one that universities such as Harvard may be isolated from in having large endowments as security nets, but others without such funding may continue to turn to.

The smaller-than-average tuition hike is certainly a good sign, but the economic downturn has left universities searching for ways to continue to fund themselves, especially after large endowment losses. Universities evaluating wealth as a factor of admissions is a new strategy which they will use to meet budgets while ostentatiously and publicly flaunting financial aid as a top priority. Universities cannot seek to solve their financial problems at the expense of those most financially burdened. Low-income students should not "cascade down the social hierarchy" solely because of the genetic lottery or socioeconomic situation which they were born into. We cannot defeat the age-old socioeconomic income gap alone - universities have to come together to attract the best talent and diversity regardless of financial need so that income does not determine educational opportunity.


Articles for Reference:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2009/06/college-tuition-costs-for-the-new-school-year-will-rise-an-average-of-43-the-smallest-increase-in-at-least-37-years-the-n.html

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122832139322576023.html

http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2009/03/20/harvard_to_reduce_dependence_on_drawing_from_endowment/

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE55M66320090623

http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/9664

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/31/education/31college.html


Kevin Prior
INeedAPencil Summer Associate
Harvard College 2011

FAFSA Simplification

Last Wednesday, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the simplification of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by reducing 20% of the questions, mostly in redundancies. The Obama administration will also seek legislation to further winnow down the form to a simpler version. The streamlining of the FAFSA is a step in the right direction - it will incentivize disadvantaged students who had been intimidated by the red tape to apply for federal funding in the form of Pell Grants, Stafford Loans, Perkins Grants, and even work-study or state aid.

This is a significant stride towards equitable education, at a time when it is most needed. Scholarships, grants, and state aid are being cut back or eliminated in light of the economic downturn. The Davis United World College Scholars Program has cut its scholarship offering of $20,000 per winner in half, The Fulfillment Fund - offering scholarships to Los Angeles students - has cut its offerings in half over the past three years, and The New York Times Company has cut its offered scholarships to 12 from 20. Even state aid has been significantly effected - in Pennsylvania state grants have been reduced, and California is considering cutting its state scholarship program completely in formulating its budget.

The long-awaited simplification of the FAFSA is a watershed in the push for equitable access to education. However, the economic downturn, as well as other barriers - including the income-moderated SAT score gap - are apparent indicators that there is room for improvement. INeedAPencil seeks to offer SAT prep for free such that educational opportunity is not determined by one's socioeconomic status.

Articles for reference:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/24/education/24fafsa.html?_r=1

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/27/education/27scholarship.html?ref=us


Kevin Prior
INeedAPencil Summer Associate
Harvard College 2011