The National Commission on the Cost of Higher Education, appointed by Congress to conduct a comprehensive review of college costs and prices, warns that colleges and universities must contain prices and demystify their financial operations or face a public backlash that could trigger government cost controls. Its report calls for five specific…

The Federal Direct Student Loan Program is not an improvement over the Federal Family Education Loan Program and is doomed to fail as did a similar large-scale federal program 33 years ago. The program will not save money; the government is ill-equipped to manage it; it has been pushed past its demand; and schools do not want the change. (MSE)

The Clinton Administration's national service proposal, and its ramifications for federal student loan programs, are outlined. It is proposed that college officials can be most constructive by helping to design the program's in-college component, where their expertise and attention are most needed. (MSE)

Higher education should respond to the accreditation crisis by making evaluation/accreditation sector-specific, developing a common sense of mission and standards for each sector, working with the federal government to define a supportive federal role, structuring the evaluation/accreditation process to stimulate institutional change, focusing on…

Many colleges address complex problems with a single "silver bullet" strategy. Because value shifts according to the consumer's situation or goal, private colleges should become more aware of their "situational value" and exploit it. This requires an understanding of how students choose colleges. In contrast, popular silver bullets target…