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Letter to the New York Times

September 26, 2005

David Brooks misses the single largest contributing factor to the education gap between low-income students and their high-income peers, when he says that “Given the rising flow of aid money, financial barriers are not the main issue” (“The Education Gap,” column, Sept. 26). According to the congressionally created Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, millions of academically prepared students from low-income and working families will be shut out of college over the next 10 years unless the federal government and states reinvest in their need-based student aid programs. The committee found that finances are a huge barrier, even for students from low-income families who are among the most qualified to attend four-year colleges.

Letter to the Boston Globe

August 16, 2005

Your article got it wrong on why colleges are worked up about Congress’s proposal on college cost (“U.S. bid to keep tabs on tuition irks colleges,” Aug. 16). The proposal has little to do with ranking colleges in a public image building contest. It has everything to do with de facto price controls.

Letter to the Boston Globe

February 10, 2005

Jeff Jacoby would not pass a class in introductory higher education economics or 20th-century American history (“Making college affordable,” February 10). Every piece of empirical evidence that exists—from the U.S. Department of Education, independent consultants, and higher education economists—debunks the urban legend that increases in federal student aid drive up college tuition. In fact, a study by Coopers and Lybrand found that as the level of Pell Grant funding increased, the rate of tuition increases slowed.

Letter to the New York Times

September 28, 2004

It is an urban legend that colleges and universities are not doing their part to encourage students to register and vote (“Barriers to Student Voting,” September 28). The Times’ claim that institutions are not giving students opportunities to fully engage in the electoral process bears no resemblance to the real activities under way on college campuses. Visit a college campus during the next few weeks, and observe the opportunities to register and engage in civic life and participatory democracy. You will find a level of involvement unmatched elsewhere in society, and dramatically at odds with your conclusion.

Letter to the Chronicle of Higher Education

September 20, 2004

Any study that makes sweeping generalizations about the nation’s 1,600 independent colleges and universities, based on responses from a mere 107 of them, deserves to be met with deep skepticism (“Many Colleges Fall Short on Registering Student Voters,” September 17). The Chronicle’s charge that great numbers of private institutions are complacent about fostering good citizenship through electoral participation, and are out of compliance with federal law, is not only incorrect but irresponsible.

Letter to the Los Angeles Times

July 20, 2004

Private colleges and universities must be market-smart and mission-driven to survive and succeed. They have a major incentive to hold down operating costs, keep net tuition (sticker prices minus grant aid) in check, and maintain their value to consumers. A marketplace made up of 3,700 colleges and universities competes for students who place the value received for their tuition dollars above all else. While president of Ohio Wesleyan University from 1984 to 1993, I saw consumer focus shift away from quality to value, as annual double-digit inflation increases became common at private and public institutions. College presidents around the nation will agree that this attitude still prevails.

Letter to Investor's Business Daily

July 19, 2004

It is an urban legend—embraced by several Washington policymakers—that increases in federal student aid drive up college tuition.

Letter to Newsday

March 29, 2004

After reading your recent series on college costs ("Paying for Progress," March 21; "The Financial Burden," March 22), the families of college-bound Long Islanders will be surprised by just how affordable independent (private, not-for-profit) colleges and universities are, and by the return these institutions offer on a family’s out-of-pocket cost.

Letter to the Christian Science Monitor

October 27, 2003

College students could very well play a key role in the upcoming primaries and general election (“Who Speaks for College Kids?,” editorial, Oct. 24, 2003). The views and issues that concern this ideologically diverse population warrant close watching by policymakers and candidates at all levels of government.

Letter to the Chronicle of Higher Education

May 7, 2003

First, contrary to the Chronicle’s report, the average rate of tuition increases at private colleges and universities is holding steady, not increasing. A recent NAICU survey finds that the average rate for 2003-04 is 5.8 percent, identical to the findings from our 2002-03 survey and the College Board’s figure that was published several months later. More than 250 institutions responded to our request for published tuition data, making it the most comprehensive summary of private college tuition trends currently available.


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