Despite all of the government money spent on financial aid, the difference in college graduation rates between our nation’s top and bottom income groups has widened by nearly 50% over two decades. We need to reset our nation’s policy priorities so that student borrowers are given the opportunity for a fresh start, to finish school, and hopefully climb the economic ladder.
NCLC’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project released a 2013 Priority Agenda for Higher Education this week, listing priorities for federal and private student loan assistance. The priorities focus on the goals of promoting equal access to higher education, giving borrowers a chance to go back to school, restoring a reasonable safety net, and ensuring that federal funds target the needs of students. These solution-oriented priorities can help restore the original goals of federal student aid to make higher education more accessible.
