Educators are faced with increasing student loan debt, increasing costs of becoming a teacher, and stagnant teacher salaries. Research suggests that the structural elements of the student loan system, including systemic barriers, may act as deterrents, preventing access and opportunity, especially in the teaching profession. The profession needs…

The federal role in higher education has grown over the past two decades, and now a new administration has the opportunity to strengthen policies that support students and their colleges and universities. To help inform these decisions, the Urban Institute convened a bipartisan group of scholars and policy advisers to write a series of memos…

This brief is intended as an evidence-based guide for policy analysts and decision makers to inform critical areas in the Higher Education Authorization Act related to racial justice. Our recommendations prioritize combating systemic racism in higher education with a particular focus on disrupting anti-Blackness, though several sections focus on…

Despite increasing financial pressures on higher education systems throughout the world, many governments remain resolutely opposed to the introduction of tuition fees, and some countries and states where tuition fees have been long established are now reconsidering free higher education. This paper examines the consequences of charging tuition…

2008 has been a tumultuous year in the financial world, culminating in scandals and bailouts. In 2009, the author asserts, people can probably expect not only more financial upheaval, but also further attempts by state and local governments to stem the all-but-fated turmoil. But in all the talk of bailouts, of embattled homeowners, and the…

This study examined the availability of federally subsidized Stafford student loans for postsecondary education in light of recent legislated changes, specifically the Higher Education Amendments of 1992 and the Student Loan Reform Act of 1993, which authorized the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, brought changes to the Federal Family…

This report proposes reform recommendations in the Federal Student Loan Program that are intended to reduce government (and taxpayer) costs, allow for the incorporation of the National Service Initiative, and provide more flexible repayment terms for borrowers. The proposal provides for an evaluation period for direct government lending, the…

Some of the faults and values implied by present methods of financing higher education are examined, and new financial arrangements are proposed. Problems with the current system include: the price to the consumer of higher education in relation to its cost of production, tuition gaps among schools, and evaluating the price in relation to value of…

Congressional debate over modification and reform of Title IV, Student Assistance of the Higher Education Act of 1965 is discussed. The 1965 Congressional hearings on the 1965 Act, up for reauthorization in September 1979, are expected to continue into 1980 before Congress finally approves a bill. Title IV implements the federal philosophy that no…

Three big-city school systems nearly went bankrupt in the 1970s. New York City, including its schools, ran out of money; Cleveland closed its schools for long periods to conserve funds; and Chicago's schools ran out of credit. This paper narrates these crises, examines the responses of state governments and teacher and custodian unions, and looks…