Obama talks student debt, affordability in conference call

The Maneater and several other college publications took part in a conference call with the president Monday.

By Samantha Sunne

Published Sept. 28, 2010

In a conference call with college journalists Monday, President Barack Obama expressed his intention to make college more affordable and help students graduate without debt.

Obama said he wants to increase financial aid funding, investigate the rising costs of public universities and keep in place a change in health care policy that allows people to stay on their parents’ insurance plan until age 26.

“All of those things can be helpful in moving us forward, but the single most important thing I’ve got to do is make sure that we get this economy back on track,” Obama said during the call with students from several college publications, including The Maneater, across the nation.

He said his three priorities regarding education are to make it affordable, ensure that it prepares students for the jobs of the future and to assist students in graduating.

Obama said, starting in 2014, student loan payments will be capped at 10 percent of a person’s salary. Residual student loan debt after 10 years will be forgiven for students working in public service, such as teachers and police officers.

Dave Roland, a policy analyst at the Show-Me Institute, said this action is nothing more than a federalization of the student loan business, an action that is funded by taxpayers.

Obama also suggested investigations into the rising costs of public university tuition. He said an improved economy would provide state governments with more tax revenue, which would provide universities with more funding.

Ruth Ehresman, Director of Health and Budget Policy for the Missouri Budget Project, supported that proposal.

“We track the state budget very closely, and we know that there’s less scholarship money available for students both for need-based scholarships and for achievement-based scholarships and that’s very concerning,” she said.

MU raised out-of-state tuition by 2.7 percent in April due to state budget cuts.

“So if the federal government can help fill the gaps, you know, that have been created by budget cuts in Missouri, we think that’s a very good thing,” Ehresman said.

Obama said another possible reason for the upward trend in tuition costs is that many schools seem to spend a lot on amenities such as food courts and athletic facilities.

“It’s sure a lot nicer than it was when I was going to college,” he said. “Somebody has to pay for that.”

Roland said one reason for the above-average facilities on campuses is that schools are trying to outdo each other, and have garnered high amounts of money due to virtually inexhaustible demand from students.

“My concern as a free market voice is that the expenses that these colleges are going to are not inherently bad, it’s just a question of whether they are responsible,” he said.

Obama said he also wants to improve the economy so that students have better employment prospects. Despite living in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, he said, young people getting college degrees should have no trouble finding a job.

“If you’ve got skills in math and science, or good communication skills, there’s still jobs out there even in a tough environment,” he said.

Obama also implored students and young people to vote in the midterm elections coming up Nov. 2. He said the success of many of his proposals would be influenced by votes in this election.

“You can’t suddenly just check in once every 10 years or so on an exciting presidential election, and then not pay attention during big midterm elections where we’ve got a real big choice between Democrats and Republicans,” he said.