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Health & Fitness

Controlling the Cost of Higher Education

One of my top priorities as a congressman will be to bring down the cost of higher education. College costs have been rising rapidly for decades, and are now beyond the means of far too many students. Taking out huge loans to cover the cost is not a good solution – it leaves young adults to bear a severe financial burden, possibly for many years.


Today, children worry desperately about which institution will accept them. Children and parents together worry desperately about how they will pay the institutions. My wife and I are now more than half way through putting our three daughters through college. We didn’t challenge the premise. We sold our house to help make things work. Hopefully, parents and children in the future won’t have to make the same tough choices.


The President’s recently announced initiative to cut the cost of higher education will, if fully implemented through Congress, create necessary regulatory flexibility and strong financial incentives for educational change. I support the initiative and, as a member of Congress, I will be an advocate for continued progress along the lines that the President has outlined.

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The President proposes to change higher education financing in two major ways:


• Paying colleges for performance, by (a) by making the level of federal student tuition aid depend on value metrics like cost and graduation rate; (b) using a “Race to the Top” program to push states to also base their allocation of public education dollars on performance.

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• Encouraging educational innovation by (a) creating a new college rating system that will “help students compare the value offered by different colleges”; (b) making innovation grants to colleges and universities, including grants “to promote accelerated degree paths and credentials”; and (c) reducing regulatory barriers like seat-time requirements, allowing “students to get financial aid based on how much they learn, rather than the amount of time they spend in class.”


President Obama also promises to continue efforts to hold down the costs of student borrowing.


Part of how college costs can be controlled, while at the same time improving quality and giving student more options that fit their learning and life-situation needs, is through the use of technology. The unaffordable price of the traditional four-year residential college model is creating strong pressures in this direction. “Massive open online courses” are becoming more popular and it is only a matter of time before many colleges develop less expensive degree programs that don’t involve sustained residence.  We can also foresee an unbundling of the delivery of instructional content from the processes of peer-socializing, coaching, assessment and knowledge certification.  


The President’s push for higher value will no doubt meet substantial resistance from institutions concerned that the new transparency will put them in an unfavorable light or disadvantage them financially. Undoubtedly, any new measurement approach will create the possibility of unfairness and may encourage unanticipated behaviors. We need to move forward with care and sensitivity.


But the current system is broken. It costs too much for most families. And it simply fails in too many instances to deliver an experience that makes students into better citizens or workers. We need to thoughtfully question our current approach, remove barriers to change and create strong incentives for change. These will be among my high priorities as a member of Congress.


For more information, please visit my web site, WB4Congress.com, or feel free to call me directly at 617-771-8274


And don’t forget to vote on Tuesday!



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