Sunshine in the Middle of a Rainstorm

Diane Auer JonesFormer Assistant Secretary for

Postsecondary Education,U.S. Department of Education

Understanding the Policy Environment

• $25.4 billion for Pell Grants - 2009-2010 (up from $14 billion with stimulus spending)• Average Stafford Subsidized loan ~$7580•Average Unsubsidized Stafford loan - ~$9288•Average Consolidation loan - ~$74,106•Average PLUS loan - $22,897•Average Student indebtedness - $23,200

2009 Average Tuition and Fees

• Public 2 year - $2,544• Public 4 year - $7,020 (in state) [$28,000]• Public 4 year - $18,548 (out of state) [$80,000]• Private 4 year - $26,273 [$120,000]• For Profit - $14,147• Cohort Default Rates are rising after hitting an all time low several

years ago (largely because hurricane states were exempted from the numbers)

• Despite rhetoric to the counter, the true cost to families is much higher once living expenses, books, and loan interest are included. For those who get aid, the unpredictability is a problem.

The Campaign Trail

At the top of almost every family’s worry list are:•Concerns about college cost•Concerns about college admissions

Elected Officials MUST

Address these Concerns

Misuse of the BLS Report

• 2002, The Big Payoff: Educational Attainment and Synthetic Estimates of Work-Life Earning

• $1 million in added earnings for those who hold baccalaureate degrees (over generalized)

• Professional degrees is where the payoff is most prominent

What Do We Do Now?

• Unemployment is at a record high• Unemployment among recent college graduates is even higher

(double?)• Student loan indebtedness is at a record high• The salary earned at a person’s first job is largely predictive of

earnings for the next ten years• Job placement of college graduates in 2009 was under 19%; it

was 51% in 2007• Many students turn to graduate school to avoid unemployment,

but in so doing, take on additional debt.

What can the Federal Government do?

• The Federal government cannot control college costs (although they are experimenting with new regulations that would allow them to cap tuition costs based on career earnings)•The Federal government is unwilling to provide enough funding to meaningfully help families pay.•Elected officials used the Pell program to gather votes, based on the dollars they can find, not on the data about how much families need.• Stimulus funding provided for significant increases in Pell grant funding, but this will expire.

What can the Federal Government do?

• Savings from conversion to Direct Loan program will provide some additional funding, but not as much as predicted by the Congressional Budget Office or the Office of Management and Budget (cost of originating the loan and administering the program not included in “scoring” process)• State and local budget shortfalls will exacerbate tuition increases• Unemployment remains high

What can the Federal Government do?

Nothing…..So politicians, scholars, and

think tankersjump on the

Accountability Train

Accountability

• Graduation Rates • Retention Rates• IPEDS database – first time, full time students; cohort assessment• So where did the idea of measuring student achievement assessments come from, anyway, and was it such a bad idea?•Can you ever beat the selective elites in the accountability game?

How Can You Change the Conversation?

Let the Sun Shine!

Take control of the story!

Are Students and Families Concerned about Quality?

NO

Are Students and Families Concerned about Grad and Ret Rates?

NO

How Can You Change the Conversation?

•Provide clear information – and honest information – about rising costs.•Focus on a new student aid system rather than small changes in the old one. Revive coop!•Conduct institutional research on long-term completion rates•Survey graduates to understand employment placement, both long term and short term•Conduct studies to learn more about why students drop out/transfer/wait out•Publish data about job placement by program area

How Can You Change the Conversation?

•Encourage alumni to participate in curriculum review activities (and not just the star students)•Use your campus website to provide more information about unique features of various programs

•travel abroad is no longer novel•everyone knows that research opportunities are limited to a select few• how many undergraduates will actually get to work with the new Nobelist you just hired?

How Can You Change the Conversation?

•Find out what information matters to students and families and then report on it•Graduation and Retention Rates are meaningless to most families•What do students care about?

•Access to parking•Access to daycare•Tutoring and Support Services•Number of students in a freshman survey course•Availability of required courses•Faculty advising ratios•Relationships with local employers•Alumni activities – real ones!•Year round programming•Online courses, tutoring, supplemental assistance•Availability of housing•Experience of transfer students – both in and out

How Can You Change the Conversation?

•What are you doing to help students avoid and manage debt – and not just the poor kids. Middle class families may be struggling more than anyone now. •Disclose more information about costs

•How are dollars spent?•Why did tuition go up?

•Are undergraduate tuition dollars cross-subsidizing other programs? If so, is this reasonable or should the other programs be eliminated?

How Can You Change the Conversation?

•What is the true cost of Federal regulatory compliance?•Is it worth participating in the Federal student aid program given the cost of compliance? • Be honest about marketing costs versus educational quality costs.

•Withdraw from the U.S. News rankings

Every Campus Has a Story to Tell

•Tell it!•And don’t focus only on the uber-students or the outliers – talk about real students with real lives and real outcomes.•Strengthen ties to employers – I mean really strengthen the ties.•Think seriously about the trade offs between serving more students marginally and serving fewer students better

Every Campus has a Story to Tell

•Bring elected officials and staff to your campus•Bring student groups /alumni to Washington•Local press (I know, it’s hard to get the press to tell a good news story)•Make sure your website is telling a good story. Websites have become so generic.

And Above All….

• Stop apologizing• Get out of defensive mode• And spring into offense!