The parents of college students at a large state university in the Midwest were surveyed to analyze the parents' perspective on college financing. Results offered insight into what parents think and know about college financing and point to ways parents can be better informed about the college financial aid process. (Author/MLW)

Essentially an application of installment purchase concepts to higher education, the Zero Cash Plan allows students without cash from family resources for room, board, and tuition to attend Cazenovia College (New York) by deferring parent contributions until after graduation. The program has evolved to meet changing student and institution needs.…

An American Council on Education study reveals a substantial gap between what the public knows about higher education costs and financial aid and what Americans need to know to make sensible decisions and set sound public policy. This lack of knowledge creates anxiety, corrodes perceptions of higher education, leads to poor educational choices,…

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…

Parents are covering less of their children's college costs than ever before, according to a recent study. On average, parents contributed 55% in 1997-98, down from 69% in 1986-87; during the same period, college costs increased 38%. Reasons include decreased family savings, higher consumer debt, incomes not keeping up with inflation, and…

Reports on a $1 billion dollar grant from Bill and Melinda Gates to send 20,000 low-income minority students to college. The Gates Millenium Scholars Program will require students to demonstrate financial need and maintain a 3.0 grade point average in college. A list of the largest private gifts to higher education since 1967 is also provided. (DB)

Presents the State Board of Community Colleges' position paper on potential barriers to increasing baccalaureate-degree production. Presents four academic barriers, including lack of college preparation, and two financial barriers, including insufficient need-based financial aid support, and discusses the potential impact of the barriers on the…

Two brief stories about attitudes toward higher education in North America are presented. One notes criticisms of college faculty as underproductive and overpaid and of distorted values in academe. The second focuses on two trends: cheerleading scholarships and endorsement income for athletic coaches. (MSE)

Uses data from a national study on student aid to examine the influence of student subsidies on within-year persistence for nontraditional college-age students enrolled in two-year colleges. Finds that tuition charges had a negative effect on within-year persistence and that student aid subsidies were insufficient to mitigate this effect. (19…

The debate over the future of the student loan program has often been so rancorous that it obscures rather than illuminates the issues. The college student loan program of the future will be characterized by the acute need for excellent customer service, dependence on advanced communications technology, and intense competition among service…

Examines data from annual surveys of member institutions of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry concerning cost of education, student financial assistance, and student indebtedness. Twelve tables and six figures detail cost and indebtedness factors from 1989/90 through 1996/97. Finds costs and indebtedness have gone up…

First describes the components of a document imaging system in general and then addresses this technology specifically in relation to financial aid document management: its uses and benefits, considerations in choosing a document imaging system, and additional sources for information. (EV)

Examined the influence of a privately funded scholarship program on strategic adaptations within urban public and private schools. School administrators rapidly adapted their strategies to contend with the program. Suburban public schools prevented scholarship students from enrolling, urban public schools increased public school students' choices,…

This study finds that at one university, college major, ethnicity, grade point average, age, and number of semesters required to complete a degree are relevant in determining the student loan debts of recent college graduates. Gender is found to be irrelevant in determining student loan balances. A large percentage of recent graduates have student…

While higher education is generally a high priority in boosting economic development, public budgets to sustain expansion of higher education systems remain limited around the globe. This fiscal stress creates an impetus for governments to develop various strategies to meet the growing demand--from both students and society--for higher education…