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College Affordability & Cost

Finding college value in tough times Allentown, Pa., Morning Call January 8, 2009 Affordability has long been an issue in higher education, especially among private schools where annual costs top out at more than $50,000.  In a recession, it becomes even more of a factor for families facing layoffs, investment losses and decreased home equity.  But Kiplinger's rankings factor in cost after need-based grants are awarded, cutting costs in half for the average student who qualifies for financial aid.  (Regional emphasis)

2009 Best Values in Private Colleges Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine January 8, 2009 Will today's economy affect your ability to cover the college bills?  If you expect to receive significant financial aid, probably not, says David Warren, president of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.  Colleges with minimal endowments - the vast majority - continue to offer aid through a mix of loans, work-study and grants funded by gifts.  Billion-dollar-plus institutions have enough left in their coffers to make good on last year's promises.  Parents who pay most or all of the sticker price, however, will continue to feel the pain.

Financial doors can open for college applicants that plan ahead USA Today January 8, 2009 Dozens of private colleges are adding incentives to attract students for fall 2009. Lawrence Technical University in Southfield, Mich., plans to offer 50% off tuition for 400 laid-off workers or their dependent children. Students accepted to the UCLA or UC-Santa Barbara may attend California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks for the same price (average annual savings: $16,000).

Getting the most bang for your college buck USA Today January 8, 2009 Now, more than ever, students and parents need to make every education dollar count.  The Princeton Review's list of 100 "Best Value" Colleges for 2009, released today by The Princeton Review and USA TODAY, aims to help them do just that.  The education services and test-prep company's annual list ranks the top 10 public and private colleges and universities; the rest are listed alphabetically.  Deemed No. 1 Best Value for a public university is the University of Virginia; No. 1 among private campuses is Swarthmore College.

Recession teaching hard lessons on economics Plattsburgh, N.Y., Press Republican January 8, 2009 Education is supposed to be a way out of poverty, but for many it is too expensive, while some of those who do attend nearly go broke before graduating.

Moody's Sees Stiff Challenges for Colleges—Especially Private Ones—in Next Year Chronicle of Higher Education January 6, 2009 A new annual-outlook report from Moody's Investors Service says that higher-education institutions are facing a range of challenges in the next year and a half. Although all colleges will face hardship, private colleges will be especially stressed compared with public colleges and community colleges.

Colleges Offer Extra Aid to Strapped Students Chronicle of Higher Education January 5, 2009 Colleges are creating more student-aid programs or expanding existing ones. Others are offering students additional counseling or a grace period for paying their tuition bills. And even some that haven't seen an increase in student need are preparing for one next year.

As rich rivals cut back, small colleges sell stability Boston Globe January 5, 2009 Lesser-known schools, which do not have the luxury of dipping into multibillion-dollar reserves, are scrambling to market themselves as affordable and sound investments. Their survival, after all, is directly tied to the number of students - and tuition dollars - they bring in.

Wise Investment: Governor hits mark with proposed student loan program Post-Standard, Syracuse, N.Y. - Opinion Piece January 5, 2009 Thirty-eight states currently provide their college students with some form of affordable student loan program. New York is the only state in the Northeast without this low-cost capital alternative for families. Implementation will help encourage New Yorkers to stay in New York and give them the choice to attend any college or university in the state.  (Regional emphasis)

A helping hand for college students The Oregonian, Portland - Editorial January 5, 2009 Oregon lawmakers can do their part by funding student financial aid near the level recommended by the governor.  As for Congress, the most direct way to help students is through federal grants and loans. Congress can make a world of difference by further improving funding for Pell Grants to meet the rapidly growing need. Congress also can work with President-elect Barack Obama to make sure the Treasury helps keep credit flowing for low-interest student loans.  (Regional emphasis)

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College Financial Health/Management

Colleges face fiscal crisis San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Calif. - Editorial January 8, 2009 It's not as if the state's private colleges and schools are immune from the financial mess.  Those colleges with formerly massive endowments, with most of the money made on Wall Street, have seen those endowments drastically reduced.  But at least they still have endowments. Many smaller schools rely in great part on annual tuition to pay all bills. Their students, in turn, rely on federal loan programs in order to pay that tuition. And the international credit crisis has made those loans much, much harder to get.

Moody's Sees Stiff Challenges for Colleges—Especially Private Ones—in Next Year Chronicle of Higher Education January 6, 2009 A new annual-outlook report from Moody's Investors Service says that higher-education institutions are facing a range of challenges in the next year and a half. Although all colleges will face hardship, private colleges will be especially stressed compared with public colleges and community colleges.

Colleges Protect Workers and Cut Elsewhere Chronicle of Higher Education January 5, 2009 Most colleges have steered through the first jolts of the recession without resorting to layoffs, cutting employee benefits, or imposing across-the-board freezes on hiring. But the economic pain is afflicting campuses in many other ways, according to the findings from a new survey of chief business officers conducted last month by The Chronicle and Moody's Investors Service.

As rich rivals cut back, small colleges sell stability Boston Globe January 5, 2009 Lesser-known schools, which do not have the luxury of dipping into multibillion-dollar reserves, are scrambling to market themselves as affordable and sound investments. Their survival, after all, is directly tied to the number of students - and tuition dollars - they bring in.

At Meeting of Small Private Colleges, Presidents Don't Worry Too Much About Economy Chronicle of Higher Education News Blog January 5, 2009 The No. 1 topic of discussion at the annual gathering here of presidents on the Council of Independent Colleges is, of course, the economy.  At a session led by Kent John Chabotar, president of Guilford College, in North Carolina, dozens of presidents shared stories about how the recession had had an effect on their campuses.

Economy dominated higher ed news in 2008 USA Today December 31, 2008 The economy overshadowed just about everything else this year in the world of higher education, and no sector was spared.  Beloit College, a private liberal arts school in Wisconsin, said it must cut 40 jobs by the end of this academic year.  California State University plans to limit enrollments on its 23 campuses next year.  A number of community colleges face budget cuts, at a time when their relatively low tuitions attract more enrollments.

Going on a Diet Inside Higher Ed - Opinion Piece December 30, 2008 For American colleges and universities, the deepening recession means that costs will be rising (because of increased enrollments as unemployed persons return to school to stay gainfully occupied) while revenues will be falling, as state appropriations, private donations, and endowment income shrinks.  In such an environment, higher education institutions and their faculty may start to do some unpalatable things previously off the table. Let me list 10 possibilities.

Budgets tight at private colleges Charlotte News & Observer December 29, 2008 Private universities are bracing for tough times.  Some are freezing hiring, delaying construction, cutting course offerings and trimming some part-time faculty.  Their biggest fear is that come spring, prospective students frightened by the economic situation will take their money to cheaper public universities and community colleges or stay away from college altogether.  And students who do choose private colleges are likely to need more financial aid.  (Regional emphasis)

Higher-ed not immune from economic downturn Boston Globe - Column December 28, 2008 Like homeowners who borrowed beyond their means and are now struggling with escalating mortgage payments, many colleges are confronting rising debt payments as higher interest rates kick in on variable-rate loans that once looked so enticing.  A new report from Moody's released last week found that colleges and universities have increasingly turned to riskier volatile loans to finance projects.

Pinched colleges squeezing their alumni Los Angeles Times December 25, 2008 Walking a narrow ledge between reassurance and realism, college presidents and chancellors have struggled to assess the effect of a slow-motion slump that has no clear beginning or end. More than one president has sent out a relatively rosy assessment, only to follow up with news of cutbacks, hiring freezes and canceled projects.

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Student Financial Aid

2009 Best Values in Private Colleges Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine January 8, 2009 Will today's economy affect your ability to cover the college bills?  If you expect to receive significant financial aid, probably not, says David Warren, president of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.  Colleges with minimal endowments - the vast majority - continue to offer aid through a mix of loans, work-study and grants funded by gifts.  Billion-dollar-plus institutions have enough left in their coffers to make good on last year's promises.  Parents who pay most or all of the sticker price, however, will continue to feel the pain.

Sallie Mae Raises $1.5 Billion for Private Loans Washington Post WashBiz Blog January 8, 2009 Sallie Mae has secured $1.5 billion worth of financing from investment bank Goldman Sachs for a batch of private student loans, a sign that credit for the frozen student loan markets may be beginning to thaw.  The deal is the first transaction to provide funding for the private student loan market since September 2007, other than a relatively small securitization of $124 million, sold by the private lender MyRichUncle on July 10, 2008.

Recession teaching hard lessons on economics Plattsburgh, N.Y., Press Republican January 8, 2009 Education is supposed to be a way out of poverty, but for many it is too expensive, while some of those who do attend nearly go broke before graduating.

Senator Claiborne Pell’s Vision New York Times - Editorial January 6, 2009 The program is far from perfect. The aid hasn't kept up with the cost of a college education. The money doesn't help nearly as much now as it did back then.  Yet even Mr. Pell probably never realized, in the beginning, all the good the program would do.

Tuition Ammunition: a Happy Lesson on Lending Wall Street Journal January 6, 2009 Despite a massive federal effort to aid banks and boost the economy, lending has plunged in the last year.  Home-mortgage volume and bank loans to big companies are down dramatically.  But the government's response is expanding credit in at least one sector:  higher education.  Although the recession is weighing on colleges in many ways, the ability of students to get federal loans to pay tuition isn't one of them.

Colleges Offer Extra Aid to Strapped Students Chronicle of Higher Education January 5, 2009 Colleges are creating more student-aid programs or expanding existing ones. Others are offering students additional counseling or a grace period for paying their tuition bills. And even some that haven't seen an increase in student need are preparing for one next year.

As rich rivals cut back, small colleges sell stability Boston Globe January 5, 2009 Lesser-known schools, which do not have the luxury of dipping into multibillion-dollar reserves, are scrambling to market themselves as affordable and sound investments. Their survival, after all, is directly tied to the number of students - and tuition dollars - they bring in.

Wise Investment: Governor hits mark with proposed student loan program Post-Standard, Syracuse, N.Y. - Opinion Piece January 5, 2009 Thirty-eight states currently provide their college students with some form of affordable student loan program. New York is the only state in the Northeast without this low-cost capital alternative for families. Implementation will help encourage New Yorkers to stay in New York and give them the choice to attend any college or university in the state.  (Regional emphasis)

A helping hand for college students The Oregonian, Portland - Editorial January 5, 2009 Oregon lawmakers can do their part by funding student financial aid near the level recommended by the governor.  As for Congress, the most direct way to help students is through federal grants and loans. Congress can make a world of difference by further improving funding for Pell Grants to meet the rapidly growing need. Congress also can work with President-elect Barack Obama to make sure the Treasury helps keep credit flowing for low-interest student loans.  (Regional emphasis)

Clinton, Kennedy honor Claiborne Pell Boston Globe "Political Intelligence" Blog January 5, 2009 Former President Bill Clinton, Vice President-elect Joe Biden, and Senator Edward M. Kennedy were among those paying tribute today at the funeral of former Senator Claiborne Pell of Rhode Island.  Pell, who died Jan. 1 at age 90, was a former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and also championed student aid, with grants bearing his name.  (Kennedy's remarks, as delivered in Newport, R.I., are included in post.)

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