Link to the article
While public colleges get their funding from both state and national governments, most do not have enough money to provide students with adequate aid to allow them to graduate with minimal debt. Because of this, low income students rely on Pell Grants and various student loan exceptions to afford college and minimize debt after they graduate. Despite the fact that college tuition continues to increase along with student loan debt, President Trump and Education Secretary DeVos want to cut funding for student aid programs and change loan forgiveness policies and income-driven repayment policies. Trump plans to cut funding from federal work-study programs and end loan forgiveness for public servants such as teachers and social workers. To incentivize more colleges to accept Pell grant students, The Trump administration plans on providing funding partially based on the number of Pell grant recipients attending a college. While Trump wants to get more colleges to accept Pell grant recipients, he also wants to lower the maximum amount of money given to each student and encourage students to pursue short term certificates rather than four year colleges. In some ways, this could reduce the amount of money spent by the federal government on student aid, as well as reduce student debt. However, some argue that using grant money on a certificate is less beneficial than a college degree.
Questions:
1. What are some arguments for and against encouraging Pell grant recipients to pursue certificates rather than four year college degrees?
2. What are some of the concerns advocacy groups have with Trump's new policies for funding education and paying student loans?
3. If government funding becomes partially based on the number of Pell grant recipients enrolled in a college, which colleges will benefit and which will lose funding?
Questions:
1. What are some arguments for and against encouraging Pell grant recipients to pursue certificates rather than four year college degrees?
2. What are some of the concerns advocacy groups have with Trump's new policies for funding education and paying student loans?
3. If government funding becomes partially based on the number of Pell grant recipients enrolled in a college, which colleges will benefit and which will lose funding?
2. Many advocacy groups are concerned with the overall idea of Trump decreasing student-aid and grants to help with student loans. People think this will decrease the amount of teachers and social workers in the work-force because many of them are incentivized by the forgiving of student loans after a ten year period. The director of the department of Education at Georgetown explained that the government must regulate accreditation of short-term training programs if they decide to endorse those instead of grants for traditional four year degrees. Groups also have concerns about the logistical processes of a proposal to give the IRS permission to share tax data with the Education Department.
ReplyDelete2. Some advocacy groups are concerned about how the Education Department will execute the expansion and prevent schools with dishonorable intentions from wasting Pell dollars on worthless credentials. Additionally, Trump's plan would increase the cost of higher education for borrowers by more than $200 billion over the next decade. Graduate students would have to have to pay for 30 years longer. This raises concerns for many student advocacy groups that worry about the affect on students who already suffering under student loan debts.
ReplyDelete-Olivia
Delete2. Some advocacy groups have many concerns about Trump's new policy. The teachers who borrowed money for graduate school would have to pay 3.5 the amount than if they had access to loan forgiveness for public servants. His plan would also increase the cost of higher education by more than $200 billion over the next decade. Millions of students are already under the burden of paying student loans. Trump's plan to cut student funding would increase this burden.
ReplyDelete3. If government funding becomes partially-based on the number of Pell grant recipients enrolled in a college, many private colleges will lose funding. This is because, since private colleges tend to be more expensive than public ones, the majority of low-income students who need the financial assistance from Pell grants attend public colleges.One example is that 41% UC Irvine students are Pell grant recipients whereas only 10% of Tulane students are Pell grant recipients. Of course, the disparity of percentage of Pell grant recipients at private versus public colleges is not always so drastic; however, the difference in Tulane and UC Irvine's percentages does reflect an overall trend.
ReplyDeleteThe Institute Access and Success group are concerned with the cost effects Trump’s income-driven plan poses to teachers who borrowed money. This new plan will force teachers to pay more than 31/2 times the amount they would pay if they had access to public servants loan forgiveness. This $200 billion dollar cut proposal creates an even deeper burden for students relying on loans and leaves many wondering why Trump has responded to the student loan crisis by making it even more uncompromising.
ReplyDelete1) Trump is encouraging Pell Grant students to receive certificates in auto mechanics, construction or office managements to increase the amount of skilled construction workers to rebuild "the country's crumbling infrastructure." However, many advocacy groups are concerned with how the Education Department will execute the expansion prevent schools from wasting the money. Others advocate for the certificates because the skills will directly affect the economy and the country.
ReplyDeletePrivate colleges would suffer while public colleges would benefit from government funding being based on the number of Pell grant recepients enrolled in college. In the current system, private schools receive an immense portion of funding. Nevertheless, if the guidelines were to change, they would lose most of this funding. Compared to the average private college which costs around $36,000 per year, public universities average $10,000 for in-state residents and $26,000 for out-of-state residents. In general, low-income students who need Pell-grants attend public colleges.
ReplyDelete1) Encouraging Pell Grant recipients to earn a certificate instead of going to a four year college, does not carry as much weight as a college degree when it comes to getting a job. The job market is very competitive and to get a respected job, it is almost required to have a college degree. The higher the degree the better chance an individual has of getting a good job. This will not only hurt a students chance of getting a well paying job, but also hurt the job market and the economy. If people are not receiving high level education, it will be harder to fill high pay positions with qualified candidates. Although it would cut costs of college, reduce student debts, and cut government spending, it will hurt more than debt.
ReplyDelete-Monique
Delete2. Advocacy groups are concerned with Trump's new policies that decrease student aid programs. Many worry how the Department of Education will execute and regulate how colleges use the Pell money. Additionally, Trump's plan would increase the cost of higher education by over $200 billion, which would make it even harder for students to pay back their loan debt.
ReplyDelete1. Nowadays, the job market has become increasingly competitive; therefore, a college degree is often required in order to get a job, or even advance in the workforce. A Pell Grant that encourages the recipient to get a certificate does not give this distinction, putting that particular applicant at a disadvantage compared to someone with a college degree. However, college degrees are very expensive nowadays, and getting a certificate from a Pell Grant would be much cheaper in the short term. I don't believe though that substituting government spending for student debt forgiveness with Pell Grants is a good solution, since a college degree is often needed now to succeed in life.
ReplyDelete