RSS Feeds

What does Obama want to do with college costs?

Friday - 8/23/2013, 9:28pm  ET

President Barack Obama speaks at Henninger High School in Syracuse, N.Y., Thursday, Aug. 22, 2013. Obama is pitching an overhaul of federal student aid that would link dollars to the Education Department’s ratings of colleges and universities. His proposal would give students at better-rated schools cheaper loans or bigger grants. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Associated Press


If Congress approves Obama's plan, schools would lose federal financial aid for their students if the Education Department decides they aren't doing enough to control costs, deliver quality education or open their doors wide enough for students from low- and moderate-income families.

Here's a look at the president's proposal:

Q: What does Obama want to do?


Q: How, specifically, will the administration judge which schools are best?

A: That isn't clear, which makes colleges nervous. Obama introduced the plan Thursday and said schools would be rewarded if they help students from low-income families, keep costs low and have large numbers of students who earn a degree. Obama said the Education Department would track graduation rates, transfer rates, graduates' incomes and the numbers of students who earn advanced degrees.


A: They wouldn't have to compete. Schools would be judged against similar schools, so they would be competing on a level playing field. The ratings also would take into account schools that enroll students from poorer families and schools that show improvement. But even within the same college, there remains a wide array of majors, and it isn't clear how the ratings would account for differences between highly selective programs and more general studies.

Q: When would this start?

A: Obama wants to publish college ratings before the 2015 academic year. He wants those ratings to start determining eligibility by 2018 so that the problems and quirks in the new program can be resolved.

Q: Why would colleges embrace this?

A: If Obama gets his way, he would be putting $1 billion on the table as part of a college version of the administration's Race to the Top competition for k-12 schools. Those funds are designed to be an incentive for states to maintain their higher education budgets. Colleges also can earn a bonus if they enroll a larger number of low- and moderate-income students.

Q: What if the college or university still doesn't want to go along?

A: Students at schools that don't comply could see their federal student aid cut or denied. The federal government provides $150 billion each year in student aid, and without that, many students could not afford college. If a college lost all access to student aid, there is no way many could keep their doors open.

Q: So will students have fewer options?


Q: Can Obama do this on his own?


Q: Will Congress go along?


Q: What is the timeline for Congress to do this?

A: As quickly -- or as slowly -- as lawmakers want. The major law that governs K-12 education, No Child Left Behind, expired in 2007. The Republican-led House has once again passed its version of a rewrite of this law, while the Senate Education Committee has finished its work and awaits a vote in the full chamber. The Senate committee this fall plans to start its rewrite of the Higher Education Act, and the panel's Democratic chairman, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, has scheduled the first hearings for September. But he's also waiting for a Government Accountability Office report on federal student loans that isn't due back until December.


Follow Julie Pace on Twitter at and Philip Elliott at .
