Describes how college lobbying groups are squabbling over how much students should be able to borrow in federal student loans. (EV)

Describes how, as new competitors lobby for legislation for further open the student loan market to them, Sallie Mae and other lenders have responded by attacking the loan consolidation program. (EV)

Reports on continued growth of Sallie Mae, the nation's largest financer of federal student loans. Notes the company's purchase of the USA Group, the nation's largest student loan guarantee agency, competition with the federal direct loan program, political contributions to legislators who set loan policies, and development of Laureate, a…

Colleges and universities are finding that improvements in the guaranteed student loan process are making it more attractive than direct lending. In its third year, the direct lending program's total loan volume remains at 33%, well below the 50% goal set in originating legislation. Even some of its strongest supporters fear the program will have…

Discusses how the direct-lending program, popular with colleges, may be doomed; a lawsuit and changing political fortunes pose threats to the system. (EV)

The Department of Education's Inspector General has identified and prosecuted 17 cases where borrowers received large amounts in student loans by claiming falsely to be pursuing studies at foreign institutions. Officials see serious statutory, regulatory, and program deficiencies that may expose programs to more fraud and abuse. Critics feel the…

The federal Department of Education will help college students save money on loan interest if they consolidate loans in the direct lending program while in college. Some college lobbyists feel the administration has not done enough to cut fees and help students and colleges and, as a result, may lose direct-loan participants to bank-loan programs.…

Despite key changes in the federal Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) research program, activists and some scientists are frustrated that not enough has been done and the actions taken have not had sufficient impact on the problem. Controversy over basic vs. clinical-trial research persists. (MSE)

Despite Democrats' and educators' concern over the first Republican-led reauthorization of the Higher Education Act this year, Republicans supported the bill. Some observers feel the support is a G.O.P. survival strategy, and will not continue; some conservatives feel the party is caving in to higher education interest groups' demands. (MSE)

The student loan default rate was 9.6% in 1996, a decline of 12.8% since the 1990 peak, saving the federal government $3 billion over six years. Since 1993 the Department of Education has barred 1065 institutions, mostly for-profit trade schools, from participating in federal student loan programs; institutions with a 40% default rate can lose…

Describes how supporters for TRIO and Gear Up, the two main federal programs that encourage low-income students to prepare for college, are girding for a battle over a proposed budget merger. (EV)

A new law lowered the 1992 earnings cap that made it difficult for college students to qualify for Pell Grants, the largest federal source of need-based student financial aid. The measure also raises the Pell Grant maximum award, increases the National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget, and makes other changes in the law. Details of l998 budget…

A recent Department of Education study, developed with the assistance of the Internal Revenue Service, found that of 2.3 million Pell Grants in 1995-96, 102,000 went to students who failed to report or underreported family income. More than 300 recipients had each underreported income by over $100,000. The report comes when the Clinton…

A top aide to Vice President Gore has been chosen to lead the U.S. Department of Education's effort to modernize delivery of financial aid to students and colleges. His office is the first federal government entity to be run as a "performance-based organization." Some fear he may politicize the office that lawmakers specified be led by a…

Public officials and student aid experts agree that the federal program delivery system is outdated, inefficient, and vulnerable to fraud, but they disagree on how bad the situation is and whether the Education Department has the structure necessary to fix it. A 1995 project to integrate all federal grant and loan programs into one system has not…